Do Anything, Give Anything
by HepburnHigh
Summary: Neville has had his eye on Aubrielle Song since his first year at Hogwarts.  Now that he is a sixth year, he finally needs to man up and do something about it but something is stopping him, and it's bigger than he ever imagined.
1. Herbology Homework

**Hey guys! So this is going to be a little story about Neville and his dream witch. This takes place during his 6****th**** year at Hogwarts. Yes, Voldemort is alive and being a bad guy. Yes, Draco is being his little puppet. And yes, Harry and Ginny ARE together and there is no Lavender and Ron, only Hermione and Ron even thought they won't be seen that much in this story. Read, review, and enjoy :)**

Neville froze and his hands became clammy. She was talking to him. Aubrielle Song was talking to _him_.

"Hey Longbottom, are you gonna answer me or not?"

The wizard blinked a couple of times at the gorgeous witch standing in front of him with her arms crossed impatiently.

"Uh…what?"

"Can I see your Herbology homework?"

Neville reached into his bag and gave it to her without even thinking. He knew that she was using him for his good marks because everyone knew that he was the smartest when it came to Herbology, but quite frankly, he didn't care. She had to give it back to him at one point, which meant that he would get to see her and talk to her again, even if it was only for a split second.

The witch smacked on her gum as she took the parchments from him.

"Thanks. I'll give it back to you in the Great Hall before lunch."

Before he could say anything, the witch turned on her heel and walked towards the Ravenclaw dorms.

Neville watched her walk away, her hips gently swaying from side to side.

He had been crushing on the Ravenclaw beauty ever since he had gotten to Hogwarts when he was eleven. She had dark brown hair that hit right above her belly button and the most hypnotizing hazel eyes that he had even seen. Her lips were full and he loved that her top lip made a perfect 'm' shape. What really sent the wizard's head reeling, though, was her beauty mark right above her upper lip on the right side of her flawless face.

Aubrielle was not your normal witch. She was a half blood who lived in the muggle world with her mother and she rarely entered into the magical world. Hogwarts was about the extent of that. She was always singing or humming to herself and she didn't really have many friends. She was, however, an amazing Quidditch player and she was the seeker for the Ravenclaw team. What is even more impressive is the fact that she has, and still, beats Harry many times when casing after the coveted golden snitch. The fact that a girl keeps beating him upsets Harry very much. Aubrielle didn't seem to notice though. Even though she helped Ravenclaw win match after match, she never milked her skills or basked in the attention. She simply changed out of her uniform and kept to herself.

The fact that she was so quite and mysterious was one of the main reasons why she fascinated Neville so much. He had this urge to ask her questions and get to know the witch on the inside, not just the calm and sexy girl on the outside.

Neville walked into the Great Hall for breakfast and sat down next to Harry, Ginny, and Ron. He was surprised to see Hermione missing.

"Hey Neville. What did Aubrielle want?"

Harry said her name with a bit of jealousy behind it. Neville felt his cheeks redden at the sound of her name.

"Oh, um, she just wanted my Herbology homework."

Ron shook his head at his friend, "She's using you mate."

Neville forked some scrambled eggs onto his plate and took a sip of some pumpkin juice. The only one who knew about his crush on the witch was Ginny and he could see her smirking at him.

"I know. I'm just helping her out is all."

Ron shook his head again and took a bite of his toast. Ginny let out a small chuckle, which made Harry perk his head up.

"What are you laughing about?"

Ginny smiled at Neville, who was blushing terribly, "Oh, nothing."

Harry knit his brows in confusion but then shrugged his shoulders, giving up on the subject.

Neville liked that about Harry and Ginny. They never argued about little things because they knew it was pointless. Their relationship was one that Neville always wished he had, preferably with Aubrielle.

The four ate in silence for a little and then went off to their separate classes. Neville was heading to Potions with Slughorn. He liked potions a lot more now that Snape wasn't teaching it.

He walked into the room and sat in the back, as always. He took out his favorite quill and a stack of parchments, preparing to take notes.

As Professor Slughorn drawled on about some reviving potion, Neville couldn't help but think of the hazel-eyed beauty that currently had his Herbology homework. That encounter that they had had that morning was only the fifth or sixth one that they had ever had. Neville decided that this time, when she gave him back his homework, he was going to make an effort to say something to her, make a conversation with her. He was a sixth year Damnit and he should man up and talk to the girl that had his heart on a string.

As Slughorn's lecture came to an end, Neville snapped back into reality. He looked down at his parchment and saw that he had written 'Aubrielle' all over it.

'_Shit,'_ the wizard thought, _'way to make it obvious Longbottom_.'

He hurried out of the classroom, embarrassed, and rushed back to the Gryffindor dorms.

o.O.o

Neville was waiting at the doors outside of the Great Hall, nervously tapping his foot against the stone floor. He had gotten to lunch fifteen minutes early to make sure that he wouldn't miss her and he put cologne on, even though it was a simple exchange of homework.

He suddenly stood up straight when he saw her walking down the stairs. She was wearing her standard Hogwarts uniform, without the cloak; except her tie was loose and only half of her shirt was tucked in.

'_Sweet Merlin. She even makes messy look amazing.'_

She walked right over to the wizard and handed him the parchments.

"Thanks Longbottom."

Neville took the assignment from her and smiled.

"No problem. Oh, and, err, you can call me Neville."

Neville rubbed the back of his neck as he saw the witch raise one of her eyebrows. He relaxed a little when she let out a small chuckle.

"Okay, _Neville_, see you in class."

The wizard's stomach turned as she put an emphasis on his name. She gave him a smirk and starting walked into the Great Hall, humming to herself, but at the last second she turned around.

"Oh, and whatever you're wearing, it smells good."

This time, she went to the Ravenclaw table and left Neville by himself.

Neville let out the breath that he was holding and slumped his shoulders. He walked over to the Gryffindor table and sat next to Ginny, who was by herself. Without even looking up from the newest edition of the Quibbler that she was reading, she started questioning her friend.

"What were you and Aubrielle talking about?"

"Nothing really."

Ginny turned the page, "Uhh huh. And what does 'nothing' mean?"

Neville blushed and reached across his friend to grab some bread.

"She just thanked me for letting her borrow my homework and I told her to call me Neville instead of Longbottom."

The red head put down her Quibbler and stared at her friend. He was being unusually calm for just talking to the girl that he hasn't shut up about for the last six years.

"You're not telling me something. Spit it out Neville."

His stomach tied itself in knots as he thought about that last thing Aubrielle had said to him. His palm started sweating as he turned to Ginny. Was he really getting this nervous about a simple compliment? Sadly, he was.

"She noticed my cologne. She said…she said I smelt good."

Ginny burst out laughing, which made Neville sink down in the bench.

"Oh Neville! You crack me up. Well it has to start somewhere, right?"

Ginny collected her books, took the last bite out of her sandwich, and walked out of the Great Hall, leaving Neville by himself.

He looked over to the Ravenclaw table to see Aubrielle sitting alone with her head buried in her choir book.

'_She is definitely a strange girl,_' thought the wizard, _'a brilliant and gorgeous strange girl. Alright Longbottom. You're a sixth year now and it's time to make a move. You cannot let this one slip through your fingers.'_

Neville's face started burning up at the thought of talking to Aubrielle again. Herbology was next and that was the class that they shared. He knew that if he didn't do something than, he should just give up completely.

He rolled up his sleeves and quickly finished his lunch before walking out of the castle and heading towards the greenhouses.

o.O.o

When it came to Herbology, Neville Longbottom was known for being the teacher's pet. He always stood to Professor Sprout's left and always volunteered whenever one was needed. So, when the class walked in and saw him at the very end of the table, standing next to Aubrielle Song, it was no surprise that whispers soon filled the greenhouse. Neville, of course, turned a bright shade of red.

Aubrielle raised her eyebrows at the wizard standing next her. She didn't say anything though, because quite frankly, she didn't care that much.

Professor Sprout, however, did care and she immediately called Neville out on his seating change.

"Neville, what are you doing all the way in the back?"

The class collectively turned to the boy, who was staring down at the plant in front of him. Aubrielle whispered to him, repeating the teacher's question.

"Yeah…why are sitting back here?"

Neville swallowed hard and looked at the Professor whom he admired deeply.

"I, uh, wanted a new perspective on the class."

The witch next to him let out a tiny laugh and Professor Sprout scrunched her forehead.

"Alright Neville, whatever suits you. Lets begin now, shall we?"

Neville lowered his head, hating the fact that the attention was surrounding him. Today they were dealing with Gillyweed, which he already knew about after slipping some to Harry fourth year for the Triwizard Tournament. He looked at the slick plant in front of him all the while cursing himself for being so obvious.

'_This was Herbology. Everybody knows you in Herbology. Why couldn't you have chosen to approach her in the Great Hall or during Study Hour? God Damnit!'_

The wizard absentmindedly pounded his fist on the table, causing the beauty next to him to flinch. She let out an audible gasp and Neville cursed himself yet again.

"Sorry."

The witch looked at him sideways; this was a side of Longbottom that she had never seen before.

"It's alright Lon-Neville."

He gave a weak smirk to the girl next to him.

'_Alright Neville, this is obviously something that you need to plan out because you suck under pressure. After class, ask her. Ask her to do something. Go to Hogsmaid…or something. Yeah, that'll do.'_

As Professor Sprout lectured about the process when a person's neck forms gills on it, Neville thought about his exact game plan. As class was dismissed he would casually say hi and ask why that hadn't really hung out before. He would ask her if she wanted to get a butterbeer and, fingers crossed, she would say yes.

He looked over again at the witch, which he had all already done many times during class, and wondered what she was thinking right at this very moment, most likely something involving music.

'_Gods she is just so….so…flawless!"_

Neville didn't know the half of it though and he felt that he shouldn't get his expectations to high for fear of being terribly wrong.

Professor Sprout wrapped up the class and gave out the homework assignment, which Neville knew he would be able to finish in about ten minutes.

Neville took a deep breath and cleared his mind of all thoughts that didn't pertain to Aubrielle.

"It's now or never Longbottom."

"I thought you liked to be called Neville."

The wizard spun around to see his dream witch smiling at him. Had he really said that sentence out loud? He meant to say that in his head…shit.

"Err, I, um, I do."

Aubrielle gave him a puzzled look.

"Than why did you just call yourself Longbottom? And what's 'now or never?'"

Neville silently cursed himself at his stupidity. This was never going to work now.

"Um, I don't know why I said that. I-I didn't mean to say that out loud actually."

The witch gave out a small laugh at the Gryffindor's embarrassment. She thought they were supposed to be the most courageous house.

"It's okay. Well I got to go, I've got charms in thirty minutes."

"Right…right. Um-"

But before Neville could finish, the witch had already walked out of the greenhouse.

Neville pounded him fist on the table in frustration. That was his chance and he let it slip through his fingers! He crammed his parchment into his bag, not caring about organization or neatness. He didn't even realize that Professor Sprout was watching him.

"Ah, so _she_ was why you stood in the back today."

He quickly turned around to face not only his teacher, but also his mentor. He couldn't form a response and he decided that it would be best not to since he would most likely say curse words.

He quickly threw his bag over his shoulder and rushed back towards the castle, more frustrated now than he had ever been in his life.

**I always pictured Neville as the awkward schoolboy who never got the girl. I like writing him, I must say. But we'll see if he ever gets the courage he needs from his inner Gryffindor or not. Review :)**


	2. Ginny

**Ayo readers! I forgot to say this before the first chapter but so I don't own any of this. JK does of course. Aubrielle is an original character though, so that is my own creation. Read and review :)**

That night Neville was in a pissy mood. He completely ignored Luna when she said hi to him on his way into the Great Hall for dinner. He went and sat down next to the red headed witch that he knew would level himself out.

"I blew it. Bloody hell I blew it!"

He practically screamed at Ginny, who had just stuffed mashed potatoes into her mouth. Neville put a slab of turkey on his plate.

"Calm down Neville, you'll have plenty of chances to ask Aubrielle out. You just need to be patient is all."

The wizard was furiously cutting into his turkey, making the knife screech against the plate. His grip on his fork was so strong that there was an indent in his palm when he put it down. He started chewing hard on the piece of meat but then slowed when he let his brain rest for a second.

"Gin," he said, swallowing the chunk, "I-it's…I just can't do it. I don't think I'll ever be able to."

Neville hung his head and looked at his hands. He always knew that he wasn't supposed to be in the courageous house of Gryffindor. He wasn't Ron Weasley or Harry Potter. He was Neville Longbottom, the coward who liked to play with plants. No wonder Aubrielle never noticed him. Suddenly, the wizard felt a pain on his upper arm. He started rubbing it out of habit and turned to his friend who was holding her Charms book in her hands.

"Merlin Ginny! What the hell was that for?"

"For letting yourself down! God Damnit Neville you need to find that Gryffindor that I know you have in you. You are a great bloke. You're smart and extremely kind. You can do this, I promise you. And if you make one more bloody excuse as to why you can't…I'll hit you again but this time it will be more painful."

The witch's green eyes were narrowed in on her friend. She was completely serious and there was no way that Neville was going to argue with her. She had a point after all. He gave his friend an apologetic glance; he should have never bothered her with his problems.

"You're right. I'm sorry Ginny."

The red head sighed and turned her body to give the discouraged wizard a hug. She spoke softly into his ear as he returned the embrace.

"Neville don't be sorry. You really like her, I can tell by the way you look at her, and you'll have your chance."

Neville pulled away and smiled. _'Stay positive like Ginny. You. Can. Do. It.'_

The two finished eating their dinner together and headed back to the dorms. On the way, they actually passed Aubrielle but Neville ignored her, knowing he wasn't quite ready to face her again.

They walked through the fat lady's portrait after speaking the password and separated to go to their designated rooms.

"Goodnight Gin. Thank for talking to me."

The witch stopped mid step on the stairs and turned to her friend.

"You know I'll always be here to talk Neville."

He smiled at her, so thankful to have a best friend that cared about him so much. When he walked into the room that he shared with Harry, Ron, and Seamus, he saw that the first two were already there and dressed in their nighttime clothes.

They both collectively said hi to Neville as he entered the room but then went right back to their conversation as he changed out of his robes. Neville was listening, though, and it was obvious that Harry was upset about something that Malfoy had said.

"Yes Ron, I am 100 percent positive that that is what Gin over heard. Listen, he is a death eater and he is completely capable of doing this."

Ron shook his head in confusion.

"I just don't get it. Why the Ravenclaws?"

"Because the Ravenclaw house is known for having the brains. Evidently Voldemort thinks that they are biggest threat so that is why he has asked Draco to kidnap them. It makes perfect sense Ron."

"Blimey…and have you warned Luna?"

"Yeah, Ginny talked to her as soon as she heard."

Neville's curiosity was soaring at this point and he couldn't help but interrupt.

"Wait, what are you saying Ginny overheard?"

If she had overheard something about the Ravenclaws…why hadn't she told him at dinner? Harry turned to look at Neville; he had briefly forgotten that he was in the room.

"Oh. Well she overheard Malfoy telling Blaise something about slowly kidnapping the Ravenclaws. I don't know Neville, that's a risky thing to do. My thought is that the professors will catch on to that. But it doesn't surprise me at all."

Neville knit his brows together. How in Gods could Draco _kidnap_ every Ravenclaw? The whole thing seemed unreasonable to him.

Ron let out a yawn and walked over to his own bed.

"Harry the whole thing just sounds like something he said to get you upset. He knew that it would get back to you and I say don't stress about it."

Harry let his best friend's words sink in, but Harry was someone who wouldn't let this go.

"Yeah, yeah. We'll see."

Ron rolled his eyes and tucked himself in his bed. Within seconds he was lightly snoring. That kid could sleep forever if he wanted. Neville went and sat next Harry. He wasn't that tired and he wanted to talk.

"Harry, if this is true, what Draco wants to do with the Ravenclaws, do you think he would try to snatch the older ones first, or the younger ones?"

Harry raised his forehead at the question. He hadn't thought about that.

"I don't know Neville. I reckon the younger ones because they would be easier to influence. I don't understand why he is going after just the Ravenclaw house though. I mean, the Slytherins are already evil in my opinion. He might as well just convert them all like he did to Draco."

Harry looked up to see a worried look on his friend's face. He was scared about this, but Harry couldn't pin point why. He continued talking though, and it was more so what he was thinking in his head but just verbalizing it out loud.

"And why not try to get at the Gryffindors? That's my house; those are the people that could get the closest to me after all. Plus," he turned to Neville and winked, "we _are_ the most badass."

Neville gave out a small chuckle. Harry always knew how to insert the perfect little joke.

"Well Harry, if I were You-Know-Who I wouldn't go for any of the Gryffindors."

"Why is that?"

"Because of the fact that you _are_ in the same house. We would do anything to protect our own."

"You know Neville, you are a smart wizard."

Neville blushed at the compliment as his friend patted him on the back. Harry took off his glasses and set them on his nightstand. He looked like a completely different person without them on. Getting the hint that he was tired, Neville moved towards his own bed.

"Goodnight Harry."

"Goodnight Neville."

The two wizards slipped under their blankets. Neville turned to his side as Harry's breaths became slow and deep. His mind was still racing and he knew he wouldn't get much sleep tonight.

_The Ravenclaws? That was tricky. Sure, they were known for being the smartest but that also meant that they knew their spells well. Trying to capture one of them would be hard as hell. Of course, Harry had said that the younger ones would most likely be targeted. That made sense. Problem was, once Draco actually kidnapped one, how the hell would he get them out of the castle unnoticed? No student could apparate in or out and as far as he knew, the floo networks in the dorms were shut down. _

Neville thought of Aubrielle.

_She's a sixth year so she isn't one of the young ones._

He had never seen her perform real magic before though so he had no idea how adequate her skills were. He shook away the thought. Draco was a coward and he always said things just to cause problems. There was no way that this was true. No way.

Neville shut his eyes, willing his body to shut down and sleep. Before he knew it, he was out cold and dreaming about the hazel-eyed witch that was in this Herbology class. Look like he would get some sleep tonight after all.

**Review please :)**


	3. The Library

**Read and Review. Kcool :)**

(Friday)

The sun shined through the large windows of the boys' dormitory in the Gryffindor tower. Neville moaned and turned his head the other way. He was already awake though and he knew he wouldn't be able to fall back asleep, no matter how hard he tried. Today was Friday, a day that Neville loved and loathed at the same time. He loved it because he had no classes that he had to attend, but he also hated it because he normally spent most of the day at the library getting all of his homework done.

He rolled over so he could sit up on the edge of his bed. He put his feet down and shivered as he felt a cold sensation sweep up his legs. It was late fall and the weather always gave the castle a cold, eerie feel to it.

The wizard stretched his arms over his head and arched his back. He winced as he heard his vertebrae crack multiple times. He sounded like an old man for Gods sake. He then walked over to his wardrobe and flung open the doors, surveying his clothes. He took out a pair of laidback jeans and his favorite argyle sweater. He went back to his bed and pulled on some wool socks before slipping into his favorite black loafers. He went into the bathroom to give his face a quick rinse before heading to the Great Hall for breakfast.

He turned on the faucet and let the water run while he looked at his reflection in the mirror. He had bags under his eyes but they weren't that large in size or that dark in color. He was getting some serious stubble on his chin and he came to the conclusion that he needed to shave as soon as possible. He cupped his hands under the running water, tilled his head downward, and slashed the hot liquid onto his face. He did it two more times, loving the way the warmth felt on his skin. He took a folded hand towel off of a small stool and wiped away the droplets that were streaming his face. Feeling that he was acceptable enough to go out in public, especially with the chance of seeing Aubrielle, the wizard walked through the Gryffindor common room, out through the portrait of the Fat Lady, and down towards the Great Hall.

As soon as he walked through the giant double doors and looked over to his house's table, he immediately saw the long ginger hair. He also was happy to see Luna Lovegood's long, blonde curly hair next to Ginny's. He had completely ignored her the other day when she said hi and he needed to apologize for being a git. He walked over to the two witches and sat down across from them. Ginny looked up to see her friend and gave a small smile. Mornings were not her thing.

"Hey Nev."

"Good morning ladies."

He pivoted so he was looking directly at Luna.

"Hey Luna, listen, I'm really sorry about ignoring you yesterday when you said hi. I just wasn't in a good mood and-"

"It's quite alright Neville. I could tell that you needed space."

"Yeah. I still feel bad though."

Luna gave her friend a genuine smile, "Don't be."

Neville started filling his plate with assorted fruits and he filled his glass to the brim with pumpkin juice. The three ate in silence for a while before Ginny broke the quite. She leaned in close to her friend and talked in a hushed whisper.

"So Harry told me that he told you about what I heard Draco say to Blaise."

Neville took a second to decode her terribly worded sentence but soon realize it was about the Ravenclaw conspiracy.

"Oh, right! Yeah, why didn't you tell me yourself though? I mean, you could have brought it up at dinner last night."

"I wanted to but you were so fumed about…"

Ginny trailed off and looked over at the witch next her. She didn't know if Neville had ever told Luna about Aubrielle and if he hadn't, she didn't want to let something slip that would upset him. To both of their surprise though, she already knew whom they were talking about.

"You're talking about Aubrielle, right?"

Neville let his jaw drop just a tad as he looked at the girl.

"H-how did you know?"

Luna smiled at both of them, like there was nothing to it.

"I can just tell."

Ginny looked at Luna and then back to Neville. _'Note to self: Never underestimate Luna again.'_

"Right. So, err, you were just really fumed about Aubrielle and I didn't want you to freak out about this."

"It's alright Gin, I understand. And after talking to Harry and Ron last night, if this were to even happen, we think Draco would go after the younger Ravenclaws first because they would be easier to influence."

Ginny was quiet for a minute and thought about what her friend had just said. It made sense completely but she still didn't believe Neville's calmness. He was freaking out on the inside, she could tell. But before she could say something Neville was already talking to Luna.

"What do you think Luna? Do the Ravenclaws know about this?"

"Oh yes. They know that there is a rumor going around but we aren't that alarmed. It _is_ simply a rumor."

The witch smiled and nibbled on a bagel. Neville took a sip of his pumpkin juice and took a bite into a huge strawberry.

"But, what if it stops being a rumor and becomes a reality?"

Luna set down her bagel and patted her mouth with a napkin. She squirmed in her seat a little as she thought.

"We've actually made certain precautions. I-I can't talk about it though."

Neville shook his head; understanding that the Ravenclaws need to keep any safety spells secret. If Draco were to find out what they were, he would be able to know what he was up against and plan accordingly. Neville ate his last piece of fruit and checked the time. It was already 11:30 and he needed to get to the library. He stacked his plate and his glass and stood up.

"Well I've got to go to the library, lot of work to do. I'll talk to you guys later."

The two witches nodded as Neville walked away from the table. As he was walking out of the Great Hall, he couldn't help but sneak a glance at the Ravenclaw table. He was disappointed, however, when he didn't see Aubrielle.

He hiked back up the stairs and back into the Gryffindor common room. Neville brushed his teeth, grabbed his book bag, and set out towards the library.

o.O.o

"Alright, question one, what is the potion "Doua Sansa" and what does it do?"

Neville scribbled his quill on the parchment, talking out loud to himself as he did his Potions homework.

"Doua Sansa is a reviving potion. It can bring someone back to the present even when they are inches away from death. Question two, what are the five ingredients of said potion?"

Neville looked over to his notes.

"The potion is made with fluxweed, moondew, dragon blood, dittany, and…"

The wizard squinted at his parchment. He cursed himself when he saw what was written. This must have been the time when he started thinking about Aubrielle because all he could read was her name. Ugh, now he wouldn't be able to finish his homework properly. _'Wait a second, you're in the bloody library.'_

Neville got up and walked to the Potions isle, looking for the book _Potions for Reviving Wounded Wizards and Witches. _He immediately spotted the worn leather binding on the shelf in front of him. He took out the book and opened it to the index. He used his finger to follow the list of potions down to 'D,' page 118. Neville flipped to the page as he started walking back to the table he was situated at. He read the ingredients, "Fluxweed, moondew, dragon blood, dittany, and the last one-"

"Phoenix feather."

The wizard whipped his head up when he heard the familiar voice. Aubrielle Song was standing in front of him with her hands full of Herbology books. Neville looked at her for a second before looking back at the book. She was right.

"Doua Sansa, right?"

"Err yeah, but how did-"

"I could tell by the first four ingredients you said. I took sixth year Potion last year when I was a fifth year. It's kind of my thing."

The witch blushed which made Neville blush as well. Suddenly realizing that his parchment was still laying on the table, the one that had her name written all over it, he slammed the book down on top of it so she couldn't see it, which, in return, made her jump.

"Err, sorry about that. Just frustrated with this homework."

Aubrielle looked at the parchment, the one that wasn't concealed under the book, and smiled at how easy it was to her. She looked up at Neville and but then looked down at her stack of books.

"I'll help you with it. But," she lifted her arms a little to put emphasis on her Herbology books, "only if you help me with all this plant stuff."

Neville's insides were churning. He wanted to scream 'yes,' he wanted to jump up and down and spin in circles. The girl of his dreams wanted his help and he couldn't be happier. This was a complete 180 from yesterday. Instead, he simply nodded his head and gestured for her to sit down next to him at the table. She unloaded her arms and pushed the books to the side, deciding to help Neville finish his potions homework first. She looked over at his questions. They seemed simple enough and she remembered this potion very well.

"Question three, how is the potion consumed?"

She looked up at Neville who had his brows knit together. He was thinking hard and she found it funny that he could be so good as something like Herbology, which was known for being one of the hardest courses at Hogwarts, but not something like Potions where all you had to do was memorize ingredients. Of course, that was just her.

"Um, I think it's suppose to be swallowed?"

"Is that a question or your answer?"

"Answer?"

The witch let out a laugh. She found his uncertainty funny and cute at the same time.

"Well you're right."

Neville sighed and wrote down his answer on his scroll. He secretly hated the fact that he was being shown up by a girl but he was glad that it was a Ravenclaw, let alone Aubrielle Song.

She helped him finish the rest of his homework and by the end he felt like she had taught him more about the reviving potion than Slughorn ever could have. He put his parchments away in his bag as Aubrielle moved her Herbology books in front of her. Neville wanted to take this opportunity to talk to the witch and get to know her better.

"So, err, why do you fancy potions so much?"

"Well, I don't know really. I just like the idea that there is a potion for everything. There is one that can kill someone and at the same time, there is Doua Sansa, which can pretty much bring someone back to life. It just fascinates me; the fact that you can take objects that aren't related to each other in any way and combine them to make something so powerful."

Neville let his jaw drop a bit as the witch rambled on about her love for potions. Her intelligence just made her three times as sexy in Neville's mind. A girl who was pretty was one thing, but a girl who could hold an intelligent conversation was another. She smiled weakly at him, thinking she was boring him, and quickly changed the subject.

"Well I could ask you the same thing about Herbology. Plants are so, so…_boring_. How could you love them so much?"

"Easy. They are all natural, made straight from the earth itself. I find that so intriguing that these things can be created without any help from man kind at all."

The witch slowly nodded her head, she had never thought about it like that before. The two sat at the table and soon an uncomfortable silence formed. Neville twiddled with his thumbs and Aubrielle took some parchment out to get started on her homework. She tried to take it out slowly but every time something moved it made a terribly loud noise. Neville hated that he couldn't think of anything to say to her. He needed this opportunity to get to know her better.

"So, uhm, I notice that you hum and sing a lot. And you always have music with you…"

Aubrielle looked up and blushed a tad but then smiled. She loved music and she had no problem talking about it.

"Yeah. I love music and I love singing. I'm in the highest choir here actually. Have been since third year. Normally kids don't make it in till fifth year but Flitwick took a fancy to my voice right away. I'm an alto, a girl that can sing rich low notes, and girls like that are harder to come across than girls who are sopranos and can sing really high."

"Ah, I see."

Even though Neville had no idea what she was talking about, mostly because he didn't know any music terms, he wanted her to keep talking.

"I love singing songs during the holidays, like Christmas songs. They make me feel warm inside. I don't know, that might sound weird."

"No, no not at all! I love Christmas music!" Neville practically shouted that last bit and felt embarrassed at how enthusiastic he was. He rubbed the back of his neck out of nervous habit and cursed himself in his head. _'Take it easy there Longbottom. This is the first real conversation you've had with this girl. Don't scare her away!'_

Aubrielle's attention was diverted; thank Gods, when a paper airplane came flying over in her direction. The paper simply read that she had 30 minutes until Quidditch practice. She let out a groan, how could she have forgotten about practice? She looked up at the wizard sitting next to her and started gathering her Herbology books. Homework would have to wait. Neville had a startled look on his face when he saw how quickly she was getting her things together. Had he done something wrong? Was he boring her?

"Sorry Neville but I have Quidditch practice in 30 minutes and I completely forgot."

She waved the paper as evidence and started walking down the isle and towards the library's exit. She had liked their little conversation though and she felt it was cordial to acknowledge so. She stopped mid stride and turned on her heel to face the wizard that she had left in his chair. When he saw her turn around, he stood up.

"Err, I'm playing Slytherin tomorrow. It should be a good game. You should come watch."

A wide smile spread across Neville's face as his stomach starting creating knots. The girl of his dreams was inviting him to watch her play. If someone came up to him and slapped him at that very moment, he would still be happy.

"Yeah…yeah of course!"

Aubrielle gave him a grin before turning back around the leaving the library.

As soon as she was out of sight and long gone, Neville jumped up and did an awkward happy dance. He could feel his face getting red and his body heated up.

'_Yes, yes, yes! I'm finally getting somewhere!'_

The excited wizard grabbed his bag and rushed back to the Gryffindor dorms, smiling to everyone he passed.

**Alright….listen…I'm not one who will hold off chapters if I don't get a certain amount of reviews…BUT PLEASE REVIEW. It only takes like…3 seconds and it will make me extremely happy :)**


	4. Quidditch

**One review…WOAH BABY. Haha sorry if I seem like an ass. I just hope that if you have time to read the story you have time to review. I always look forward to responses and advice. Welp…next chapter. It's short, I know, but that just means that my ideas are flowing.**

(Friday Evening)

Neville busted through the Fat Lady's portrait and sprinted to the boys' side of the dorms. He flung his bag on his bed and kicked his shoes off. The wizard punched the air and danced in a little circle before twirling so long that his head spun. He fell onto his bed back first and gazed at the ceiling. He did all of this without ever removing the giant smile from his face.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o

(Saturday Morning)

Luna met Neville outside of the Great Hall that morning so they could eat breakfast together. After telling her of Aubrielle's invitation, the witch had agreed to lend some of her Ravenclaw spirit wear to the wizard so he could properly show his support. He had been to many Quidditch games in the past where Gryffindor didn't play, but he had never supported a certain house. Well, until now.

"I have a scarf that would be good for you. And a hat."

Neville looked up at the blonde witch who had just put a strip of bacon in her mouth.

"What will you wear though? I feel like I'm taking all of your spirit wear away from you."

Luna shook her head to reassure her friend.

"No, no Neville. Nielah and I made big feather headdresses, you know, cause our house mascot is a bird." The witch took a sip of pumpkin juice and put her cup down. She was surprised to see the look of confusion on her friend's face.

"Nielah? But you must know who she is."

"Err, I don't. Is that…bad?"

"Well you should know who she is since you're crushing on her older sister."

Neville practically choked on the strawberry that he had just started to swallow. Aubrielle had a younger sister that he didn't know about? Man, he felt so stupid. But how come she had never mentioned her? And how had he not seen her before? Luna answered all his questions, as if reading the wizard's mind.

"I guess you wouldn't know her that well since she is only a fourth year. Fourth years have those odd schedules so their passing times and such are different from everyone else's. It's weird that Aubrielle never mentioned her though. The two sisters are quite close to each other. They are always together in the Ravenclaw common room."

Neville shook his head in disbelieve. How had he missed this?

"You'll know they're sisters once you meet her. They look so much alike. The only difference is that Nielah looks younger and her hair is a lighter shade of brown."

Neville let his mouth gape for a moment. Not only was he just learning about Aubrielle's kid sister, but he was going to meet her too. At the moment, he felt more stressed than he should. Nonetheless, the game started in thirty minutes so the two scarfed down their breakfast and ran to the Ravenclaw dorms to grab their spirit wear. Once wrapped in the blue and bronze ensembles, Luna's looked quite, well, Luna-ish, the two walked out of the castle and headed towards the Quidditch pitch.

Luna and Neville made their way up the rickety wooden stairs and appeared in a sea of sapphire and bronze. Neville could see another feather headdress in the front row and he walked toward the witch with Luna leading the way. The two situated next her and Neville surveyed the crowd. Like always, Harry, Ron, and Ginny were located right by Lee Jordan, who was the announcer. Harry liked to go to every Quidditch game, regardless of who was playing, so he could observe and watch his opponents. Ron and Ginny just tagged along.

Luna was talking to Nielah about something and the younger Song sister turned to face him.

"Hi, I'm Nielah. Luna's told me about you. You're Neville Longbottom." She stuck her hand out and Neville took it in his, giving a firm shake. To his surprise, she gave a hearty shake back. He silently examined her for a quick minute. Yes, she was definitely Aubrielle's little sister. She had same mesmerizing hazel eyes.

"Err, yes, that's me. And you're Aubrielle's little sister, right?"

The young witch smiled and her face filled with pride. It was evidently an honor to her to be linked with her sister.

"Right."

Suddenly the far end of the spectator section rose and cheered as the Slytherin team flew to the field. Neville clenched his teeth as he saw Draco's unmistakable platinum blonde hair speed past him. He never had anything personal against the wizard, per say, he just hated how he treated his friends. And for that, he disliked him greatly.

The Ravenclaw took the field next and Neville stood with the others and cheered. Aubrielle came flying through and her long, dark hair was tied back in a braid. She sat on her broom with ease and flew to the center of the pitch where the seekers met to shake hands. She reached over and took Draco's hand in her own and wished him luck. Draco simply sneered.

The teams took their appropriate places and the referee called out the rules. Both teams gave a thumbs up, the various balls were released, and the game went underway.

Immediately Neville saw Aubrielle lock down on the Golden Snitch and she was zooming towards the other end of the field. Draco had seen her and he followed suit. The two were weaving in and out of the towers as Ravenclaw scored against the Slytherin keeper. The crowd around him cheered. Neville took a quick glace at Harry, no doubt he was rooting for Ravenclaw, and let out a small chuckle when he saw Harry do a fist pump. Soon, however, Slytherin came right back and scored. The game had just started and already Neville could tell that it would be a close one. This game would surely come down to which seeker was better. He inwardly prayed that Aubrielle stuffed it to Malfoy.

The two seekers lapped around the field, both with their determination dead locked onto the tiny golden ball that was taunting them. They flew past the commentator and the teacher bleachers as Lee announced another score for Ravenclaw. The two split however, when Draco darted toward the center of the pitch while Aubrielle shot straight up into the air. Draco had his arm out stretched and it was obvious that the snitch was inches away from him. Surely Aubrielle had seen that. Neville scratched his chin, what was she up to?

Suddenly, the Ravenclaw seeker dive-bombed the center of the pitch. She flew straight down with so much speed that she was simply a blue blur. It almost looked like she was going to run head first into the ground, almost. As the crowd gasped in unison, the witch stretched her arm out and at the last second turned so she was flying parallel to the ground. Draco spun on his broom and his jaw dropped as the crowd grew silent. When Aubrielle came back towards the center, she held her hand above her head, displaying the golden treasure in her fingers. The entire Ravenclaw section erupted in cheers as they watched their seeker claim victory in about 2 minutes flat. Neville shot up and hollered. She was some witch. He snuck a look at Harry and saw that, even though he was clapping, his head was shaking in disbelief at what the witch had just accomplished. Surely, he was not looking forward to competing against her any time soon.

Aubrielle glided towards the referee and threw her the snitch before dismounting effortlessly off her broom. Her teammates soon encircled her and gave her congratulatory pats on the back. Neville could hear Nielah yelling next to Luna.

"WOO HOO! GO AUBRIELLE! THAT'S MY SISTER!"

Neville smiled at the young witch's cheers. He had to admit, it would be an honor to be so close to Aubrielle like Nielah was.

The Slytherin team landed on the ground and started walking towards the locker rooms. Aubrielle reached a hand out to Draco but he pushed her aside. Anger grew inside Neville as he saw the wizard be so rude to the girl. Hadn't his parents ever taught him how to be gracious in defeat? Guess not.

The Slytherin students started filing out of the stadium while the Ravenclaw students shouted, "SONG! SONG! SONG!" over and over again. Aubrielle gave a polite nod to her fellow Ravenclaws before leading the team out of the arena.

Once the team was outside, all the students wearing blue and bronze started to walk out as well. Neville immediately saw Harry and he ran up to him.

"What a catch! Wouldn't you say Harry?"

Harry answered his friend without even looking up at him.

"How the hell did she do that?" He then looked up to see Neville dressed in blue. He raised his eyebrows and a smirk soon occupied his face.

"I thought you didn't choose sides when Gryffindor wasn't playing."

Neville blushed at Harry's comment. _'Oh Gods Longbottom. What do you say to that?' _He thought for a second before replying.

"Oh. Yeah I usually don't but…um… Luna wanted me to show support for her house."

Harry let out a small chuckle and patted his friend on his shoulder.

"Alright Neville. Do what ever pleases you."

Neville wanted to ask what he meant by that but Harry was already walking back towards Ron and Ginny. When he looked over to the two Weasley siblings, he locked eyes with Ginny, who winked at him. Neville felt the tips of his ears turn pink. Luna tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Shall we go congratulate Aubrielle?"

Neville turned around and smiled at her.

"We shall."

The two walked over to the seeker who was already being fawned by her little sister as well the entire Ravenclaw house. She graciously accepted the compliments with a simple smile and a "thank you."

Neville waited patiently with Luna and finally their time came to see her. It was like waiting in line to see a celebrity. Aubrielle smiled as she saw the two of them walk up to her, which made Neville feel light headed. He practically shouted at the witch.

"That was bloody brilliant! How-how did you decide to do that? And get it at the perfect moment and…" Neville took a breath when he saw her chuckle. "It was just pure genius is all."

"Thank you Neville. Nothing to it really. I knew that Draco had beaten me in speed so I figured if I shot straight down at it I would build up enough momentum to snatch it. Plus I know my skills flying wise so I knew I would be able to avoid the ground with a quick jerk."

Neville seemed to be doing this a lot around the witch but he let his jaw drop a tad. She never failed to amaze him. Nielah was busy hanging on her sister's hip, her eyes full of pride. Aubrielle was gently stroking her back and smiling down at her. This was one of those moments where Neville wished he had a sibling to love like that. Of course, his friends were pretty much his brothers and sisters. He would do anything for them and he knew that they would return the favor.

One of the Ravenclaw chasers, Jeremy Stretton to be exact, called for Aubrielle, saying that Colin Creevey wanted her picture for the school's paper. The witch blushed slightly and nodded in agreement. It was obvious that she was a humble person who didn't like the limelight. She said a quick good-bye to Luna and then Neville, adding that she would see him in Herbology on Tuesday. Neville just smiled and thought about how Tuesday could not come any sooner.

**Review please, please, please!**


	5. News and Plans

**So I am known for being a fast paced writer. I like to move the stories along quickly, and I am trying to slow it down. So I'm sorry if you feel this is slow, but I am trying to go day by day and get all the little details correct. Hopefully you still like it! Reviews are ALWAYS loved and welcomed!**

(Sunday)

By Sunday, two bits of news spread through the school like a fiendfyre. The first one was rather extraordinary. Aubrielle's amazing nosedive for the snitch was officially declared the quickest snatch in Ravenclaw seeker history. Evidentially, not only had she broken the record, but she also did it by over 40 seconds. When Dumbledore announced it at dinner Saturday night in the Great Hall, the entire Ravenclaw table erupted in cheers and started chanting her last name again, "SONG! SONG! SONG!" Aubrielle, being the modest witch that she was, simply stood up and gave a polite wave. Neville knew she was bursting on the inside, though, because he saw her trying to keep her smile from taking over her entire face. Neville looked over to see Harry's reaction and started laughing when he saw it. Harry's face had gone white and his jaw practically hit the floor. When he looked at Neville he simply said, "Unbelievable."

The other bit of news was the exact opposite. It was one that sent shivers through Neville's body. The rumor about Draco kidnapping the Ravenclaw students grew in intensity after the brutal defeat by their Quidditch team. Draco was constantly shooting nasty looks towards their table in the Great Hall and everyone noticed. The rumor had reached all the students, but somehow, the professors seemed oblivious. The Ravenclaw students started walking through the halls in groups, making sure that one would never be singled out. Luna had also informed Harry and the gang that she and some of the other elders were keeping watch outside their portrait constantly at night. Cho, Aubrielle, and herself were all talented witches and they were fairly confident in protecting their house. On top of keeping watch, they also placed some very powerful wards outside their common room.

Sunday evening, Cho, Harry, Neville, and Ginny were in the library talking about the situation. They were alone for the most part and they were concealed in a little nook. Even though Ginny trusted Harry completely, Neville couldn't help but notice that she was uncomfortable with how close the two exes' were sitting. Neville simply squeezed her hand to reassure her trust in her boyfriend. Cho was old news.

Harry was sweating with stress. He felt like it was his responsibility to protect everyone in the school because he was The Chosen One.

"I just- I think you need to have more guys night watching as well. I'll come with Ron and Neville. We'll do it together."

Neville shook his head, agreeing with his friend's statement, but Cho didn't like what her ex boyfriend was saying.

"No Harry. Luna, Aubrielle, and I are perfectly capable ourselves. We don't need your help. And who cares if we are three girls? Look at Hermione. She'll hex your arse all the way to America before you could even blink."

"But, no offense, you three aren't Hermione. She is the brightest witch of our time. Just, please let us help!"

Harry was getting frustrated at Cho's stubbornness. Secretly Neville wanted the witch to give in because it would mean that he would get to be with Aubrielle all night. Cho showed no signs of giving in, however, and she abruptly stood up.

"For the last Harry, we don't need nor want your assistance. Remember, it is still a rumor. Now, if you don't mind, watch starts in 20 minutes and I need to get back to the Ravenclaw tower."

She looked into his eyes defiantly, daring him to object. He simply hung his head, suddenly finding interest in his shoes.

"Fine."

With that, Cho walked out of the library, leaving the three Gryffindors alone. Ginny eased a bit without the presence of the witch. Neville cleared his throat, drawing the attention of his friends before speaking.

"Harry I know you want to be in control of all this but you can't. Those girls are very good witches and you know it. Let them handle their own problems."

Harry lifted his head up, meeting his friend's eyes. Ginny took her hand and intertwined it in her boyfriend's. He looked over at her and then back at his friend.

"You're, you're right. Lets just go get some sleep."

The trio stood up and walked back to the Gryffindor tower. He wanted Harry to relax; he hating seeing him so worked up all the time. Neville was being somewhat of a hypocrite, though, because on the inside he was freaking out about Aubrielle's safety.

They whispered the password to the Fat Lady and walked through the portrait to find Ron and Hermione snogging on the couch in the Common Room. Harry blushed and Ginny's jaw dropped.

"Merlin you two!"

Upon hearing his sister's interruption, Ron flung Hermione off him and the two straightened their hair. Ron was a brilliant shade of pink and Hermione was rubbing her palms together.

"Err, sorry about that guys. What did Cho say about letting you three keep watch?"

Hermione motioned for Harry to sit down as Neville and Ginny sat on the floor by the fireplace. Hermione and Ron sat back on the couch as well but made sure to not get to close after being walked in on like they just had. Everyone grew quite and Neville decided to break the incredibly awkward silence.

"She isn't budging. She said that her, Luna, and Aubrielle are perfectly capable of doing the watch by themselves. She also made it a point to say that it was still a rumor and that we shouldn't worry too much."

Ron shook his head in disbelief. He hated Malfoy even more than Harry did and he had a gut feeling that this wasn't going to be a rumor for long.

"Do they understand what Malfoy is capable of? The git is a bloody death eater! He could bring reinforcements in somehow! The dude is messed up."

Ginny stood up than, gave Harry a gentle kiss, and walked towards the girls' dormitory.

"Babe, I know you want to help but they aren't going to accept any right now. I'm going to bed to get some rest and you should too." She turned to look at her brother and her friends. "You all should."

Neville stood up and walked over to Ginny.

"She's right."

The rest of the Gryffindors nodded and got up to go to bed. While Hermione and Ginny went one way up the stairs, Ron, Harry, and Neville went the other. Once changed into their pajamas and after they had brushed the teeth, the three wizards hit their beds and almost instantly fell asleep. They were mentally exhausted and it was obvious that they needed a long, dream filled night.

o.O.o.O.o

"_Crucio!"_

_Aubrielle's body collapsed to the floor as Draco hissed the curse at the witch. She was forced to speak the Ravenclaw password and the portrait swung open. Luna and Cho were lying petrified on the floor next to Draco's feet as Blaise stepped out from behind a statue. Draco sneered at the witch under his control._

"_Now you filthy Ravenclaw. Get me the first years, all of them!"_

_Aubrielle shook her head, trying to fight the curse that was controlling her. She looked at her attacker defiantly and weakly let the word come out of her mouth._

"_No."_

_Draco's fury rose and he tightened the grip on his wand. Aubrielle let out a scream of agony and he started to hear the other Ravenclaw students waking up. Quickly determining that she would tell the professors about what he had done and the other students would see him as well, Draco decided that he couldn't have any witnesses and he needed to kill the witch before the other Ravenclaw students rushed into the Common Room. He dragged her out of the room and forcefully slammed the portrait shut. _

"_You have embarrassed me for the last time you stupid girl!"_

_He took his wand and aimed it directly at her head, showing his power over the drained witch._

"_Avada Ke-"_

"NO!"

Neville woke with a start and realized his heart was beating a thousand beats a minute. His pajamas were soaked with sweat. He clutched his chest and took deep breaths to try and get his heart rate back to normal. A light flicked on and Neville turned to see that he had woken Harry up.

"Neville what's wrong?"

"N-nothing Harry. Just a nightmare."

Harry's eyes grew wide with concern. He pulled back his covers and walked over to Neville's bed, sitting on the edge.

"Was it about Draco and the Ravenclaws?" Neville shook his head. "Please tell me about it."

Neville swallowed and looked at his friend. He really didn't want to relive what had just gone through his head, but he would for Harry's sake.

"Draco and Blaise ambushed the girls. Blaise, h-he petrified Cho and Luna from hiding behind a statue. That bloody coward!" Neville could feel himself getting more and more angry. _'It was just a dream Longbottom. Breathe, breathe.'_

"And Draco, he used… he used the Cruciatus Curse on Aubrielle. He forced her to open the portrait and once they were inside he told her to get him all the first years. But she fought! She fought against his power and she yelled so they could hear and she woke up the entire Ravenclaw student body. He knew they would be down in the Common Room any second so he brought her back out into the hall. He said there couldn't be any witnesses and he-"

Neville cut off and put his head in his hands. He felt Harry lightly pat him on the back.

"What is it? What did Draco do? Hurt her?"

Neville shook his head. When he lifted it up to meet Harry, tears were streaming down his face.

"He used the Killing Curse on her. That's when I woke up."

Harry's eyes bulged at the intensity of his friend's dream. He stood up and started pacing the room with his hand on his forehead. He was whispering something to himself but Neville couldn't hear. He was practically sobbing now and he was surprised that neither Ron nor Dean had woken up.

"Harry, please tell me this doesn't mean anything! Please tell me that it's just a dream! I-if something were to happen to Aubrielle…"

"Aubrielle? What about Luna and Cho?"

Neville swallowed hard. '_Shit, shit shit.' _

"Well them too! But Draco wasn't about to kill them in my dream Harry! Just Aubrielle. Harry, I'm not connected to Draco like you are to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. This, this can't mean anything!"

Harry stopped dead in his tracks and looked at the wizard. His eyes were red from crying and his hair was plastered to his forehead from sweating. He walked over to him and sat on his bed again.

"You're right Neville, you aren't connected. But if you have this same dream again, I want you to tell me, okay?"

Neville simply shook his head as Harry headed back to his bed. He turned off the light and rested back under his covers. He was still whispering to himself and Neville knew that neither of the boys would get anymore sleep for the night.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o

The next day moved at slug pace which irritated Neville. Herbology wasn't until tomorrow so he wouldn't see Aubrielle until than either. On top of it all, he could not stop thinking about his night mare from the night before and he just wanted to see her face to make sure she was still alive.

The tension between the Ravenclaws and the Slytherins was pretty much palpable as well. There were constant staring contests taking place between the two houses even though Draco was the only one involved in the rumor, and you never saw a single Ravenclaw walking around, they were always in groups of at least three. The paranoia hit every house though because people who were friends or were related to Ravenclaws were constantly thinking that their loved one could be taken from them. In other words, Draco was able to wreak havoc in Hogwarts with one rumor that was overheard by a single person. To Neville, _that_ showed his influence and power that he possessed.

Neville was sitting in Charms, waiting for Luna to get to class so he could ask her about Aubrielle. A moment later the blonde witch entered the classroom and sat down next to her friend. Neville swiveled towards the Ravenclaw.

"How was watch last night?"

Luna chewed on the inside of her mouth, a trait she had picked up from Hannah Abbot. She carefully took out her Charms book and set it down on the table.

"Good. There were no…disturbances or anything like that."

Neville slumped in his seat as he let out the breath he was holding in. _'That meant they were all safe. Aubrielle was safe.' _Professor Flitwick came in than and stepped up on his stack of books so he could see over the podium. The small, but powerful, wizard flicked his wand and all the bottles that were lined up on the shelves behind him floated towards the students. Each student received two bottles as they took their wands out.

"Today we will be learning a more advanced spell that has to do with enlarging and shrinking objects, specifically jars or containers. Now before you all moan and groan, I understand that you already know 'Reducio' and 'Engorgio' but we are adding a twist to them. But this I mean put your wands away."

Neville and Luna looked at each other and raised their eyebrows. They had never done wandless magic to this extent and they found it sudden that the class didn't ease into it. Nonetheless, they put their wands back in their bags and turned to the professor.

"You see, by using your forefinger," Flitwick stuck his in the air, "and tracing the ring of the mouth of the container," he started slowly circling his finger on the lip of the glass, "and say the incantation ENCOGER…" the small vile in front of the wizard suddenly shrunk done to about the size of a gallon. The thing was incredibly small.

"…and there you go!" The professor took the tiny vessel and set it on his thumb. The class gave a gasp and without any further words, started trying to do the spell themselves. Within seconds Neville heard a small explosion and was not surprised to look up and see Seamus with soot on his face and his hair blown back. Some things never change. Neville looked back the two glasses in front of him and took the one that was shaped like a potion beaker. He started circling the lip with his finger and whispered, "Encoger." Immediately the glass minimized and Neville couldn't help but smile at himself. He took the tiny beaker in between his thumb and forefinger and examined it. It was in perfect shape.

"Now the thing that is so useful about this particular spell is that you can put contents inside the jars and it will shrink with it. Now to make the jars become normal again you simply hold it in your hand and say, 'Normalcy.'"

The tiny jar in the professor's hand grew back to normal size at the word. Neville tried it for himself and was proud when he was successful after his first attempt. Luna was just as successful, which didn't come as a surprise to the wizard because Luna truly was a great witch. The class ended once the bell rang and Neville went straight to the Gryffindor Tower. He walked through the common room, up the stairs, and into his room. He took his bag and flung in onto the armchair against the far wall and changed out of his robes. He then took out a pair of sweatpants and a long sleeve t-shirt and put the more comfortable clothes on. Dean soon came into the room and Neville greeted his friend.

"Hey Dean. What to go get dinner? I'm starved."

Dean also changed out of his Hogwarts uniform and instead put on a pair of jeans and a sweater.

"Same mate. Lets go."

The two wizards made their way out of the portrait and were heading down the stairs when they heard hushed whispers from a near by alcove. Immediately realizing that one of the speakers was Draco Malfoy, the duo hid behind a column with the intent to eavesdrop.

"Draco the whole school is suspicious. Who the hell could've heard you?"

Neville's ears perked up when he identified the second speaker as Blaise Zabini.

"I'll bet you any money it was Weaslette. She was the only other one in the library when I was talking about it to you and she ran out of there a mad woman."

"God Damnit Draco! Look, we, but mostly you, need to be on high alert right now. We also need to keep a low profile. If what you are saying is true, you need to wait a couple days. Let this die down mate."

"Yeah, yeah you're right. It's just what the Dark Lord told me…"

Suddenly the blonde cut off, feeling that he was being watched. He didn't want another incident like the one he thinks he had with the youngest Weasley prat. He quickly grabbed Blaise's arm and started walking into the Great Hall. Upon hearing the footsteps, Dean and Neville snaked around to the other side of the hall so the two Slytherin boys would not see them. Once they knew they were fine, Dean broke the silence.

"Bloody Hell. We need to tell Harry."

Neville simply shook his head as they darted through the huge double doors and towards the Gryffindor table. Harry was already there with Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Seamus. For safe measure, Neville looked over to the Ravenclaw table and let out a breath when he saw Aubrielle next to Nielah and Luna. _'She's okay.'_

Dean immediately stared recounting their newfound information to which Harry took in carefully, word by word. When Dean was done Harry was silent for quite some time, thinking things through. Finally he got up and walked over to the Ravenclaw table without telling anyone what he was doing. Neville could see Malfoy intently watching the Chosen One the entire time. He whispered something into Cho's ear and then in Luna's. The two witches nodded, their faces becoming serious. When all three understood the situation Harry came back to the Gryffindor table and sat back down next to his girlfriend.

"Well? What did you tell them?"

Harry swallowed hard, refusing to look the witch straight in the eye. He rubbed his hands together and weakly replied.

"I told them to use Polyjuice Potion. They need more information."

**Longer chapter eh? Review so I can get excited. Love you all.**


	6. Facade

**So you know how my story is Romance/ Drama? Welp… this is where some of the Drama is coming into play. Oh…and I KNOW this is a Neville/ OC (Aubrielle) story and I am sorry that it has not been focusing on them as much but TRUST ME WHEN I SAY THIS…all the details mean something to the story. So yea :) REVIEW!**

(Tuesday)

Neville groaned as his alarm went off Tuesday morning. He barely got any sleep from the night before because he had stayed up late talking to Harry and Luna about their Polyjuice plan that they were going to perform Wednesday. It seemed rushed, yes, but if Draco was only going to wait a few days, they needed to gain information as soon as possible.

Neville reluctantly pulled the covers away and sat up in his bed. He ran his fingers through his disheveled hair and stretched his legs, hearing his bones and joints crack in relief. The wizard suddenly perked up, however, when he realized that today was Tuesday. Today he had Herbology. Today he would see Aubrielle!

He quickly scurried to the bathroom and jumped into the shower. Once done, he dried himself off before brushing his hair and his teeth. He went back to his trunk and took out his Hogwarts uniform and put on the gold and red tie. Dean and Harry were already gone because they had early classes but Ron was still there.

Neville went over to the red head and shook him, forcing him to wake up.

"Ron! Mate…lets go get some breakfast."

As Ron heard the last word, which registered in his mind as food, he sprang out of bed and quickly dressed himself. The two boys then walked through the Common Room, past the Fat Lady, and down to the Great Hall.

The wizards immediately joined Harry and Luna at the Gryffindor table. Harry was quiet and he had dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. Luna was nervously twitching. Evidentially she wasn't fond of Polyjuice potion and she was dreading their plan. She had to do it though, for the sake and safety of her house. Harry jerked his head up when Ron sat next to him with a thud.

"Merlin Ron."

The Weasley was putting spoonfuls of food onto his plate.

"Sorry 'bout that. You look terrible Harry."

"Gee, thanks."

"I'm just saying you look tired. You need sleep."

Harry couldn't argue with that. He really did need it. He looked at Ron and nodded and then looked at Neville. He raised one eyebrow when he saw his friend smiling to himself. What was he so cheery about?

"Well you look happy Neville. What are you so excited about?"

Neville stammered a little, trying to think of a reasonable excuse. He really didn't want to tell them about Aubrielle because he had no idea how she felt about him. He heard Luna let out a giggle next to him, which caused his to blush a tad.

"J-just that I have Herbology today. You know how much I love that class."

Neville forced bread into his mouth so he didn't need to do any further talking. Harry just shook his head at his friend's love for plants. The four ate quickly and scurried off to their next classes. To be on the safe side, Neville rushed back up to the Gryffindor Tower and brushed his teeth again. After he was satisfied with his appearance, he headed towards the greenhouses.

Neville was thinking about what he was going to say to the witch once he saw her. First off, he was going to congratulate her on her Quidditch record. Yeah, that would be good. He saw her achieve it after all and it would be a good conversation starter.

The wizard entered the greenhouses and went to the back end of the table where Aubrielle usually stood. A few minutes later she came in with her dark mane tangled and wavy. Even with the unkempt disposition, she looked beautiful. _'Gods she is…is…' _Neville couldn't think of a word that would properly justify her looks. She was more than beautiful, more than gorgeous, more than breath taking. She was… flawless.

"At the back again Neville?"

His stomach turned when she spoke his name. He cursed himself for being so damn fidgety.

"Err, yeah. Is that okay?"

The witch looked at him sideways as she set her bag on the floor. He was testing her and was eagerly waiting for her response.

"Nope, it's fine with me."

He let out a breath and relaxed a little. So she didn't mind his presence. That was a start. _'Okay, good. Now, talk to her.'_

"Hey so congrats on breaking the Ravenclaw record for quickest snatch. That's pretty awesome."

"Thank you. Pissed off Potter pretty good, huh?" The Ravenclaw let out a small, airy chuckle. Neville couldn't help but laugh himself.

"Yeah. He's not looking forward to playing you guys in a couple of weeks." The wizard leaned closer into her then, making sure that their conversation wasn't heard by everyone else. "So what do you think of the plan tomorrow?"

Aubrielle looked down, realizing the severity of the question. She had been thinking about it all day truthfully. She didn't have any experience with the potion but she knew the Golden Trio had and she trusted their judgment. Aubrielle was a well-mannered witch though. She was not a rule breaker, per say, and this was going to be her first experience with something like this. This plan brought out a very rare side of the calm witch, nervousness.

"Truthfully, I'm scared. I-I haven't done anything like this. I don't want anyone to get in trouble."

To his surprise, Neville laughed at her comment. She looked at him, embarrassed by her statement. He simply waved his hand in the air, like waving away the worries.

"You just sounded exactly like Hermione Granger! Aubrielle you don't need to worry. Everything is going to go smoothly; at least I hope it will. The task is fairly simple."

Aubrielle nervously blinked at his. If Longbottom was being so calm about this than surely she could be as well.

Professor Sprout walked then and class got underway. She didn't make a fuss about Neville being in the back this time, much to the wizard's relief. Every once in a while he caught Aubrielle looking at him, which made him blush terribly. It was like she wanted to say something to him but couldn't because they were in class. He secretly prayed that she would after class was over. Sure enough, as soon as Professor Sprout dismissed the students, the witch lightly taped the Gryffindor on his shoulder.

"Uhm, Neville, you'll be with us? For the plan I mean?"

He smiled inwardly but tried to be calm and collected on the outside.

"Of course. I'm the one that's going to be on watch outside of the dungeons."

Aubrielle's lips formed a small, soft smile which made Neville's head spin. She simply shook her head and said, "Good," to the wizard before turning around and heading back into the castle. Neville stood there, stomach full of butterflies, watching her long, dark hair sway back and fourth as she walked away.

o.O.o

That night, Neville, Harry, Hermione, Cho, Ron, Ginny, Dean, Aubrielle, Luna, and Seamus meet at the very back of the library to go over the plans for the following night. It was simple to say the least but it seemed like nothing went according to plan for Harry and his friends. Nonetheless, the steps were as follows.

During Slytherin Quidditch practice tomorrow in the afternoon, Harry and Ron will sneak into the locker room and steal hairs from Blaise, Pansy, and Astoria's robes. They will then take the hairs to Hermione, who will disperse them into the different cups of Polyjuice Potion that will be in the Gryffindor locker rooms. Harry will become Blaise, Luna will become Astoria, and Aubrielle will become Pansy. Once the team comes in from practice, Cho will be in the girl's bathroom to knock out the two Slytherin girls with a sleeping charm and Dean will be in the men's bathroom for Blaise. They are then going to be helped by the others to move the bodies into the broom storage units. This part is tricky since the other Quidditch players will be there. Harry knew though that Draco liked to stay out on the pitch for and extra 15 minutes or so after everyone else has left so he can fly. There was only one other girl on the team and she had already become sick with the help of Fred and George's products. When Malfoy came back in from practice he would see his "friends" and they would head back to the Slytherin dungeons together. From there, Neville, Dean, Ron, and Cho would run ahead so that they could be on lookout. Ginny and Hermione would stay back in the locker room so that when the Slytherins wake up, they will be there to make them "sleep" again. Aubrielle will play the blood thirsty, pushy Pansy that will beg for information. Luna will be the quiet, reserved Astoria that will take in the conversation word for word. Harry will be the calm Blaise that will gain the trust of his best friend. For the most part, the plan was pretty solid.

They went over it 3 times, 4 times, 5 times. By the time midnight rolled around everyone was mentally exhausted. They left the library in pairs, making sure to not attract too much attention since they were out after curfew. Harry left with Ginny then Ron left with Hermione. Cho and Luna had already left for watch duties but left Aubrielle behind since she was the one who was most worried about the operation. Dean and Seamus left after Ron and Hermione after counting to 100, which left Neville with Aubrielle. The two left the library and talked to each other in hushed whispers.

"It's going to be okay Aubrielle. You got this."

The witch merely nodded her head. In her eyes, she didn't know what she had. They were walking slowly, trying not to make too much noise on the stone floors.

"Neville, to be honest with you, I'm not always who I appear to be. I try to be calm on the outside, for Nielah mostly, but I'm not like that on the inside. I overthink everything."

She looked up to meet his eyes, praying that he wouldn't think she was pathetic. She really liked the little friendship that she was forming with the Gryffindor. She was content when she saw understanding in his eyes.

"You're preaching to the choir Aubrielle. I'm like that too; well, except I don't seem cool on the outside like you. I just seemed freaked out."

The witch let out a chuckle but then covered her mouth when she heard it echo through the empty hallway. They walked up the last flight of stairs and were soon standing outside of the Ravenclaw portrait. Aubrielle turned to Neville and did something that was so unexpected. She hugged him. She suddenly wrapped her arms around his waist and…hugged him. Neville was stunned at first, happy as hell, but stunned. Soon though, he wrapped his long arms around her strong shoulders. The witch under him let out a sigh.

"Thank you for talking to me, and understanding."

"No problem."

The two released from each other and Aubrielle entered into the Ravenclaw Common Room after whispering the password. Once the portrait swung shut Neville raced down the stairs, his heart beating out of his chest. His whole body was tingling from her touch. Gods he was such a sap!

He rushed back to the Gryffindor dorms to see that Harry and Ginny were still up. He blushed when they saw how happy he was. Ginny started laughing, which didn't help the situation. Harry scrunched up his forehead.

"Uh, you alright there Neville?"

The wizard rushed to the dorms, "Yeah, great." As he was running up the stairs, he could still her Ginny laughing in the Common Room.

**I'm sorry that this is so short but I wanted the Polyjuice Potion scene to be all in one chapter and that would mean that this chapter would be ridiculously long. Review!**


	7. Polyjuice Potion

**So just as far as where I am in my outline…this fanfic is going to be a LOT longer than I thought. Bear with me please. So anyway…this is the Polyjuice chapter. Review if you love it/hate it/whatever…I'll take anything. Thanks!**

(Wednesday)

Aubrielle's hands were absolutely shaking, and that was a drastic understatement. Neville had never seen the Ravenclaw so freaked out, ever. Trying to comfort her, he wrapped his hands around hers. She stopped shaking at the touch and looked up into the wizard's eyes. He spoke slowly and confidently.

"Stop worrying. Everything is going to fine Aubrielle. Look at how many of us there are to help you. Worrying isn't going to do anything."

The witch made an audible sigh and hung her head. She wasn't concentrating on the task at hand and she knew it. She needed to think about the present situation, not the possible outcomes. She let Neville hold her hands in his because she really did find it comforting. They were sitting on a bench right outside of the castle doors, waiting for the others to arrive. Slytherin Quidditch practice had started 30 minutes ago and they had 30 more minutes before they were done. Thirty minutes to collect the hairs and become a different person entirely. Harry and the others walked towards them and the duo sitting on the bench stood up. Harry looked at them and then turned to the others, "Ready?"

Everyone shook their heads and the gang started walking towards the Quidditch pitch. Harry used his captain key to gain access to the locker rooms. Hermione immediately went into the Gryffindor room while Harry, Luna, and Aubrielle searched through the cabinets for the correct school uniforms. Aubrielle walked up to the first door and opened it. She looked up and saw the plaque with Pansy's last name etched into it. She nervously reached in and fingered the end of the Slytherin's Hogwarts uniform. She saw a short, dark hair and gently pulled it off the garment. As the witch started walking towards the Gryffindor locker room to hand the piece of DNA to Hermione, she couldn't help but start shaking again. This was it; this was the hair of the witch she was about to become. She was about to become a Slytherin. Aubrielle shuddered at the thought and handed Hermione the hair.

"And you're sure this is hers and is from her robe?"

Aubrielle shook her head, "Positive. It's from her locker and the robes were definitely hers."

Hermione took the hair and dropped it in the green, chunky liquid. The potion hissed as it reacted to the strand. Hermione gingerly stirred it with a rod.

"Harry and Luna have to drink it at the same time as you so we are going to wait until they bring their hairs as well."

Aubrielle sat down on the locker room floor next to Hermione as she waited for her friends. This clique that she was becoming apart of was really affecting her. She felt like she wasn't such an outsider. She felt like she finally found some real friends and it had only been a week. Harry walked in with a fistful of short, dark hairs and handed them to his friend who then dropped them in a separate glass. Luna was not far behind with her hair and soon the three were holding their noises and downing the vile potion. Aubrielle thought she was going to puke and dropped her glass on the floor, causing it to shatter into tiny fragments. She ran over to the sink and gripped the sides of it for balance. Neville was soon behind her with a worried look on his face. He had seen the effects of Polyjuice potion before and he knew it was not a fun experience.

"Breathe Aubrielle, breathe!"

The Ravenclaw took in a huge gulp of air as she felt her whole body tingling. She saw her long hair shorten before her eyes. Her skin suddenly grew paler and her face narrowed out. She felt her eyes grow narrow and her fingernails gain length. She hated his feeling. She hated it! Neville was patting her back, trying to get her to relax. Suddenly, the weird bubbling sensation had stopped and she realized she was done with her transformation. She took a deep breath before looking up into the mirror. She jumped back when she saw her reflection. She was the spitting image of Pansy Parkinson, and she hated it. She gasped at the bitch that she saw in the glass. Neville gripped her shoulders to stand her up straight.

"It's time!"

Harry, err- Blaise, yelled as the Slytherin team dismounted off of their brooms and started walking towards the lockers. Aubrielle, Luna, and Harry ran into the Ravenclaw locker rooms to hide while Dean and Cho took care of their designated Slytherins. Just as Harry had predicted, Malfoy was still flying around the field.

Cho easily charmed of the two girls and Ginny immediately helped her move their bodies into the broom closet, after which Hermione pointed her wand at her their heads and said "Obliviate." Since the girls were taken care of, Luna and Aubrielle ran back into the girl's locker room and quickly changed into the green and silver Hogwarts robes. Now that they were dressed accordingly, they really looked like Pansy and Astoria. Evidentially Dean was having a hard time isolating Blaise, however, and had to wait about 10 minutes until he went into the showers alone. Once the Italian boy was in a deep sleep, his body moved, and his memory erased by Hermione, Harry was able to grab the robes while under the protection of his invisibility cloak to avoid the remaining male Slytherin players. Harry had just pulled on his robe when Malfoy came storming into the locker room.

"What are you looking at Blaise?"

The blonde snapped at his best friend. Something must have happened during Quidditch practice that got Malfoy fired up. _'Great.'_

Meanwhile, while the trio was busy becoming their respected Slytherin, Neville, Ron, Dean, Cho, and Seamus ran back into the castle and headed straight for the dungeons. They had scoped it out earlier that day and found a perfect alcove that they could slip into undetected.

o.O.o

Aubrielle's heart was beating so loudly that she swore everyone else could hear it. Draco noticed the change of demeanor in the girl and quickly snapped at her.

"Babe, why are so…giddy? You're shaking."

Aubrielle stepped back at the first word. _'BABE? MERLIN THEY'RE DATING!' _How should she forget something so obvious? Harry had forgotten too, apparently, because "Blaise's" eyes widened to the size of saucers. Draco walked over to his supposed girlfriend and gave her a peck on the cheek. Aubrielle froze as she felt Draco's lips touch her. '_This was insane!'_

"Calm down, okay?"

Aubrielle heightened her voice to try and sound more like the annoying Pansy.

"I-I'm just nervous is all. Sorry Draco."

Draco raised his eyebrow at her; "We'll talk about it once we get back to the dungeons."

Draco and the three imitators walked out of the locker rooms and back into the castle. Aubrielle let out a squeak as Draco took her hand in his, which made him look at her questionably. _'Get your shit together Aubrielle! You are not you, you are Pansy Parkinson. You are Draco's girlfriend.'_

They reached the dungeons and the gates swung open when Draco placed his hand on the bars. Once inside the Common Room, which was very dark and dreary, Draco sat down on the couch and pulled Aubrielle down onto his lap. Harry sat in the armchair next to the couch and Luna simply sat down on the green shag rug.

Harry cleared his throat, they only had a certain amount of time to gain information and he wanted to get the conversation started. He turned towards Draco.

"So Draco, about this Ravenclaw thing-"

"Blaise I have already told you about it a million times. Quite being such a pansy!"

Aubrielle pretended to take offense to the name and Draco quickly took her hand.

"I'm sorry babe, I didn't mean it like that!"

She rolled her eyes and tried to take her hand out from under his but Draco tightened his grip.

Luna tried to pipe up, "You haven't told me much Draco. I-I wanna help now…"

Draco shot his head towards the girl sitting on the floor.

"Since when?"

"Since…since I talked to Pansy about it."

Draco stared at his girlfriend, anger showing on his face. He quickly ran his hand through his platinum blonde hair, trying to control his temper. Through gritted teeth he confronted his girlfriend.

"You told her about Hogsmaid on Saturday?"

Aubrielle whimpered at the intensity in his voice. The real Astoria and Pansy were going to be so shocked when they hear about this.

"I- yes. She wanted to help…babe."

She barely let the last word out. It felt so weird to be calling Malfoy a pet name.

"Fine Astoria. If you want to help, you can. You can help Pansy lure some first years into the girl's bathroom at The Three Broomsticks. Okay?"

Luna shook her head and smiled. Aubrielle knew that it was genuinely Luna smiling because they had just unearthed a very valuable gem. Suddenly Harry got up and said he needed to go to the bathroom. He was clutching his forehead and his face was sweating. Aubrielle could see that his skin was slowly getting paler. She then looked over to Luna, confused, and saw that her hair was lightening in color.

'_Oh Gods! The potion is wearing off!'_

Sure enough, Aubrielle saw her hair starting to grow in length. Without even thinking, she forced herself off of Draco and sprinted out of the dungeons and strait for the Quidditch pitch. They had to return the uniforms before the Slytherins woke up. As Aubrielle was running, she was unbuttoning her robes. She heard a second set of footsteps and saw that Neville was running behind her as well as Luna. The two girls ran straight into the locker room and were greeted by Hermione and Ginny. The two Gryffindors quickly helped them undress and put the robes back into the lockers, exactly the way they had found them. The four of them grew worried when Harry didn't show up with Neville.

"He was right behind us I swear!"

Suddenly Harry came streaking through the locker room in only his boxers. Neville was close behind him with the Slytherin's robes wadded in his arms. The girls gasped at the sight and Ginny's entire face turned a dark shade of red, which made the girls crack up. Harry was soon sprinting at them again, now fully clothed, and told them to all head back to the castle. Evidentially the occupants in the broom closet were waking up and Harry was eager to tell everyone else what they had figured out.

Running into the castle, Harry, Luna, Aubrielle, Neville, Hermione, and Ginny ran straight into Dean, Cho, Seamus, and Ron. When the gang collided they all fell onto the hard floor. After the moment of shock was over, and while everyone was rubbing their sore spots, the students quickly stood to their feet. Harry started walking then and Ginny yelled out to her boyfriend.

"Where are we going?"

"Hagrid's."

o.O.o

The ten teenagers were huddled around Hagrid's big oak table as the gentle giant handed them mugs of tea. They were anxiously awaiting the news but neither Luna nor Aubrielle wanted to talk about it, leaving Harry the task of revealing the Slytherin's plans. He took a sip of his tea and set his mug back down before reiterating what they had found out.

"It's going down this Saturday…at Hogsmaid."

Hermione gasped and put her tea down.

"He is going to do it at our trip to Hogsmaid? That's when students are suppose to have fun and get away from the school for the day."

"That's why it's the perfect place to do it. They are away from school and away from the professors. He will be able to send them somewhere easier."

The students looked around at each other, concern painted on their faces. Aubrielle spoke up then, much to everyone's surprise.

"He had assigned Pansy and Astoria to lure first year girls into the bathroom at The Three Broomsticks."

The room was silent as the information sunk in. The students tried to fill the void by sipping their tea. The rumor that they all dreaded was a full blown reality. Ginny looked at Aubrielle, seriously.

"Well we'll have to be in the bathroom than. You, me, and Hermione. We'll be in the bathroom the whole time to take away their opportunity to snatch any of them."

"Right Ginny. And Neville, Ron, and myself will be in the boy's bathroom just in case Blaise and Draco are trying to do the same thing." Harry stood up and went to look out of the window. His brain was in a flurry of confusion. Draco _was_ doing this in a couple a days and they were taken off guard. How had he not seen this earlier? Ginny went up to her boyfriend and wrapped her arms around his waist from behind.

"We'll stop him babe. Don't worry."

Harry nodded his head and intertwined his fingers with hers. The couple stood there, appreciating each other's presence and support. Neville looked at the couple with envy; he wanted that so badly. He wanted a girl to call his own. Someone who was strong like Ginny, someone who could comfort him when he really needed it. He turned his head to his right so that he could catch a glimpse of Aubrielle. The witch was nervously looking down into her tea. _'One day,_' he thought, _'one day.'_

Clouds filled the sky outside, the weather perfectly displaying their mood. It was about to storm by the looks of it and the group didn't want to get caught in the downpour. They said thank you to Hagrid for the tea and walked back towards the castle silently. Once inside, they headed to the Great Hall for dinner.

As soon as Harry walked in, Neville saw Draco's head perk up out of the corner of his eye. He had his signature sneer on his face but this time there was more anger behind it. More frustration. Neville's head started forming various questions, the one concerning him the most was whether Draco knew or not. Did Draco know that used Polyjuice potion? But how could he? Hermione had altered Pansy, Blaise, and Astoria's memories. Neville saw Pansy take her boyfriend's hand and give it a squeeze. He seemed to snap out of his mood and melted at her touch. Nope, he didn't know. _'Thank Gods.'_

Aubrielle, Luna, and Cho went and ate at the Ravenclaw table to show their protection over their house. Everyone ate in silence even though they were all thinking the same thing. What if they couldn't stop Draco?

o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o

(Thursday)

Neville was sweating in Herbology. His palms were slick with perspiration and his hair looked greasy. Why? Because he was finally going to do it. After six years of liking Aubrielle Song, he was finally going to ask her on a date. _'Holy shit. Do it…do it. DO IT.' _He turned to look at the witch that was about shoulder height compared to him. She had dark circles under her eyes because she stayed up the night before worrying about Saturday and the war in general. She still looked beautiful though, he had to give her that. As Professor Sprout dismissed the class, Neville made sure to reach for his bag at the same time Aubrielle reached for hers. When their heads collided from both bending down at the same time, Neville immediately apologized.

"Ow! Gods I'm so clumsy. Sorry Aubrielle!"

The witch rubbed her head and slung her bag over her shoulder. She laughed at Neville's worried expression.

"No worries Neville. A bump never killed anyone."

The Gryffindor blushed and started walking with the witch out of the Greenhouses.

"Hey Aubrielle, so uhh, I know that you're nervous about this whole Draco, Ravenclaw, thing." The witch hung her head and Neville immediately regretting bring it up in conversation. He sped up his talking.

"Well what I mean is, I want to take your mind off of it! Like, err-"

"Uh, what do you mean?"

"Like since we won't really get to enjoy ourselves at Hogsmaid on Saturday, you know, since we'll be stopping Malfoy and all…"

"Spit it out Neville!"

"Will you get a butterbeer with me on Sunday!"

The wizard clamped his mouth shut at his sudden outburst. Aubrielle stopped dead in her tracks and looked at him, studying his face. It had gotten significantly red in the last couple of seconds. She thought hard about his offer, making sure that she made the right choice. It was cute how nervous he was; obviously he hadn't done this before. She looked at the tall, dark haired boy in front of her. _'Well, he is good-looking…and really smart. He's been so kind to me, so caring. Why the hell not?'_

"Sure."

The wizard let out the breath that he had been holding in, "Really?" Aubrielle laughed and started walking back towards the castle, "Really." Neville was walking quickly behind the beauty, basking in his success.

"O-okay! So, I'll meet you outside of the doors at 8?"

The witch turned around to look into his eyes and made her response at sincere as possible.

"Can't wait."

The Ravenclaw then pivoted on her toes and walked towards the Ravenclaw tower. Neville stood still, like his feet were nailed to the floor, and watched his dream witch walk away. His whole insides was tingling with excitement. He did it! He asked Aubrielle out on a date and she said yes! The wizard ran to the Gryffindor tower to tell Ginny the news. The entire time, he couldn't help but display a grin from ear to ear.

**SEE! I told you there would still be Aubrielle and Neville stuff! And I want to get a message across of still being positive in times of hardship (AKA the war that is brewing).** **Again, sorry if you feel that this is moving quickly but I tend to be a very fast paced writer. Please be patient with me! Review!**


	8. The Power of One

**Aww yea, new chapter yea! Oh and just doing it again…Unfortunately I am not nearly as creative as JK Rowling therefore the characters that are NOT original are not mine. Tear :( But anyways…enjoy the new chapter and review! :) ALSO, I am SO sorry that I spelt Hogsmeade wrong in previous chapters. I feel like a terrible fan and I will NEVER do it again. Hope you'll still read!**

(Thursday Evening)

Neville busted through the portrait of the Fat Lady and ran straight into the girls' dormitory without even knocking first. He flew the door open but immediately spun around when he saw a very shocked Ginny Weasley standing only in a bra and knickers.

"NEVILLE!"

The dark haired wizard blushed in embarrassment and quickly went back out of the room waiting for her to put some clothes on.

"Sorry Ginny! I should've knocked!"

"Yeah, no kidding!"

He slumped down the side of the door and listened as Ginny opened and closed drawers. He heard her shuffling her feet on the floor and grunt as she put on her clothes. Suddenly the door was opened and he hit the floor at its absence. He was lying on his back, staring up at his best friend.

"Alright Neville," the ginger witch spoke, "what do you want?"

Neville stood to his feet and followed her down the stairs to the Common Room. They walked over to the plush, red couch and sat down. There was no one else in the room so they were able to talk comfortably.

"I have good news."

"Oh yeah? How good? Did Draco suddenly decide to be a good guy?" The witch snorted at her own joke.

"Yeah that'll happen when Hell freezes over. No, no I asked Aubrielle on a date."

The youngest Weasley, who was staring at the fire, whipped her head around to meet the wizard's eyes. They had such life in them and his smile was beaming.

"Oh my Merlin…she said yes?"

The Gryffindor, still smiling, nodded his head to confirm her question. Ginny's face lit up in excitement and she jumped onto of her friend to wrap him in a congratulatory bear hug.

"Neville this is amazing! How did you do it? When? What are you doing? TELL ME DETAILS!" Ginny had jumped off him and was jumping up and down in the middle of the Common Room. Neville laughed at the witch; she was more excited than he was!

"I asked her today in Herbology."

"How?"

"I don't know; it just kinda came out."

"When is it?"

"Sunday at 8."

"Where are you going?"

"Hogsmeade for a butterbeer."

Ginny let out a squeal and ran back to her friend, embracing him in another bone crushing hug. He tired to push her off but she was stronger than he thought. Between breaths he tried to tell her to get off.

"Ginny- I – can't- breathe- please…"

"Oh!"

The witch jumped off of him and rolled onto the floor. She looked back at Neville with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes.

"I'm just so happy for you!"

"Thanks Gin. Means a lot."

The two friends perked up when they heard the portrait swing open, followed by what sounded like an aggravated Ron.

"That heartless git! I swear if he steps within 20 feet of her I'll take his blonde hair and rip it right off his head!"

The red head stormed into the Common Room with Harry following closely behind. Not even paying attention to his friend that was trying to calm him down, Ron took one look at his sister and started barking orders to her.

"Go to Hermione right now Gin. She is in the Prefect's bathroom crying her eyes out. She needs a girl right now."

Understanding the urgency in her brother's voice, the witch stood up and ran out of the portrait. The Weasley boy threw his bag across the room, which hit a chair and knocked it over. Harry was trying to cool him down but nothing was working so finally the dark haired wizard ran and tackled his friend, holding him in a death grip.

"I SAID CALM DOWN RON. Acting like this isn't going to do anything!"

Ron was thrashing under his friend but finally stopped when he lost his energy. Neville, taking in the scene from the couch, spoke for the first time since Ron came barging in.

"What the Hell happened?"

Harry slowly got off his friend and pointed his wand at him, daring him to act out again. Ron also stood to his feet, brushed off his robes, and went and sat next to Neville on the couch. He propped his elbows on his knees and held his head in his hands. Even though he spoke softly, there was still venom behind his words.

"Malfoy is what happened."

"What did that git do?"

Harry came around the other side of the couch after putting his wand away. The Chosen One rested himself into the arm charm next to the sofa and spoke for his friend.

"He attacked Hermione, just out of no where! She left the Great Hall early after dinner to head to the library. You know, to do her usual business. When we walked out about 20 minutes later, we heard her scream so we rushed towards her. W-we heard Malfoy yelling at her too as we were running..."

Neville's face formed a frown as Harry recounted the story. Gods he hated that Slytherin bastard.

"What did he say?"

This time Ron perked his head up, his face painted with hatred. As he was talking he was clenching and unclenching his fists.

"Oh I know what he said, word for word. He was screaming at her, degrading her! He said, 'You're a pathetic little mudblood and you'll never stop me! And when I'm done with the Ravenclaws, I'll get you. And you'll be my personal slave and you'll serve me like a mudblood should!' And when me and Harry reached her we saw her…pinned up against the wall with Malfoy's wand pointed at her. He had used incarcerous on her! He was choking her!" Ron suddenly stood up, his emotions bubbling out of him, and Harry stood up as well to brace his friend. Ron wasn't the only one upset, though, and Neville found himself wanting to kill the blonde haired git. How could be so cruel! How dare he hurt Hermione like that! Ron reached over to the fireplace mantle and swung at a vase, causing it to shatter on the floor. He was livid now and wanted to hurt someone, something, anything. Harry pointed his wand at his friend and muttered, "Sorry," before casting a calming charm over him. Ron's demeanor changed instantly and the wizard fell to the floor, crying.

Neville went over and starting using his wand to pick up the pieces of the shattered vase. The portrait opened again and soon Hermione had her arms wrapped around her boyfriend. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was blotchy from crying.

"Shh, shh, Ron I'm okay. I'm fine, I'm fine."

Despite her words, Ron kept crying, letting out all the feelings that he had been holding in. Ginny walked through, then, and went straight to Harry.

"Hermione told me everything. I think we finally need to tell the professors about this."

Harry looked at his girlfriend but shook his head, "No. No, they have too much to worry about with the war brewing. We need to be able to handle Draco ourselves."

Harry looked back down at his friend and was relieved to see that he had stopped sobbing and was instead holding his girlfriend in his arms. Neville had just finished picking up the pieces to the vase and putting them back together with his wand. He surveyed the scene with great concern. One person had done this to them, one little boy who thought he was hot shit.

"Lets all go to bed. We obviously all need rest and tomorrow we're going to be busy planning for Draco's attack."

Wordlessly Ron and Hermione stood up. Ginny nodded her head and gave her boyfriend a good night kiss before heading to the girl's dormitory. Hermione followed her, after doing the same to Ron.

The three Gryffindor boys stood in the Common Room, watching the girls go upstairs. Neville came over a placed a reassuring hand on Ron's shoulder.

"She'll be fine mate. She's a tough girl."

"I know, I know. It's…I just feel like I let her down. I should've been there sooner to protect her." He hung his head as he thought about what she had just gone through, tears started to swell up in his eyes again.

"You couldn't have known Ron. C'mon, lets get some sleep too."

The three wizards walked up their designated stairs and quickly changed in their nightclothes. Harry fell asleep within seconds of his head hitting his pillow but Neville knew that Ron didn't get any rest because the boy fell asleep to the sounds of his friend's soft sobs.

(Friday)

Since the sixth and seventh year students didn't have classes on Friday, leaving a frustrated Ginny to go to classes alone, the older witches and wizards were able to finally get some sleep. Lately, everyone was running on sugar and strong coffee with talk of Draco's plan. At about noon, the Golden Trio accompanied by Dean, Seamus, Luna, Neville, Aubrielle, and Cho, strutted into the Great Hall for brunch. Ron had his arm protectively around Hermione and sat her down so her back was facing the Slytherin table where Draco was seated with Blaise and Pansy. Neville sat on Hermione's other side while everyone else sat in the bench across the table. While putting their meals on their plates, Cho talked in a hushed whisper.

"Do you think Draco knows? You know, that we know about his plan?"

Harry sneaked a glance at the blonde haired wizard who was partaking in a little PDA.

"If he does, he's hiding it very well."

"B-but, but remember what he s-said to me? He told me his plan pretty much. He told me he would get me after the Ravenclaws. He let it slip."

Luna reached across the table and put her hand on Ron's, which was starting to shake with anger again. Harry took in the witch's words and cursed himself for not thinking about that. _'He had let it slip. Either he is toying with us or he is just that dumb.' _Suddenly a frenzy of dark brown hair was walking right at the group. She was younger looking and wearing Ravenclaw colors. Harry had recognized her before but he didn't know her name. The hazel eyed youngster came and sat right in between Luna and Aubrielle and nestled into the latter's shoulder.

"Well hello Nielah. How was Potions?"

The young witch stuck her tongue out which made the older students laugh. They knew all too well about Professor Slughorn and his teaching. She closed her eyes as Aubrielle started finger combing through her sister's long hair. She turned to meet everyone's curious glances.

"For those of you who don't know, this is Nielah, my little sister."

Nielah opened her eyes and smiled at her sibling's new friends. She took a roll from her sister's plate and nibbled on it. Harry looked at the witch with fascination; she was a spitting image of Aubrielle. Dean Thomas suddenly stiffened and put his fork down. He leaned into Ron and told him to put his arm around his girlfriend. When the Weasley boy asked why, Dean gave a slight nod to the Slytherin table. Ron slowly turned his head to see that Draco was shooting daggers towards them with his glare. Ron's arm swung around Hermione's waist as he drew her in closer. He got a small amount of satisfaction when he saw a disgusted look come across Malfoy's face.

Aubrielle looked down protectively at her sister then down the table to Harry.

"He knows."

Nielah shot her head up at her older sister. She frowned when she saw concern in her hazel eyes.

"Who knows? And knows what?"

The older Song witch looked back down at her kin and forced a small smile; kissing her on her forehead before she sent her off to her next class.

"Nothing Nie. Now run along to Charms."

The fourth year reluctantly picked up her books and walked out of the Great Hall. A wave of nervousness washed over Aubrielle when she saw the Slytherin Prince watching her and her sister communicate. She stared at the wizard that everyone loved to hate. He had this almost dead look to him. His eyes bugged out of his sockets and his face was pale as death. His chin was pointed and his cheekbones were slightly hallowed. His silver eyes turned back to the group at the Gryffindor table and Aubrielle put her head down to avert his stare. To everyone's relief, Draco and his goonies stood up and left the Great Hall. A sudden feeling of calm wrapped around everyone at his absence. Now Harry was able to talk at a normal volume.

"Alright so Hermione and Luna will get the girl's bathroom at The Three Broomsticks and Ron and myself will get the boy's. Dean and Cho will watch the front entrance while Aubrielle and Seamus will get the back. Meanwhile, Ginny and Neville will be walking around, seeing if there is any suspicious activity in any other buildings or shops. Everyone got it?"

The gang nodded their understanding and Harry continued talking.

"Now, if there is some sort of conflict we can not make too much of a scene because we don't want to scare any of the young ones. I suggest Petrificus Totalus. If we can successfully capture everyone that is working with Malfoy, _then_ we'll turn them over to the professors. Lets try to make this clean, yeah?"

Again everyone nodded. Aubrielle looked at Harry with a sort of admiration. The wizard was bloody brilliant and she knew that; Hell, everyone knew it. He was such a good leader, whether he liked to admit it or not.

Everyone started really digging into their food and some small conversations were forming between people. Neville came over and sat down next to Aubrielle.

"Hey," she said softly, "does Nielah know about what's going on?"

"No, I didn't want to spook her. I told her to keep practicing her disarming charms though. I don't know with that child. She knows a lot more than she lets on."

Neville understood completely and shook his head. That was a trait of Luna's that he always seemed to underestimate. Just like how she had known about him liking Aubrielle. He looked over at the blonde haired fifth year; she was eyeing the couple attentively. The wizard felt awkward under her gaze so he returned his attention to the witch next to him.

"Yeah, little kids seem to have a gift for that. She's smart Aubrielle and if you've been teaching her, she should be fine."

Aubrielle smiled at his kind words, "I hope so."

"Oh she's brilliant Aubrielle. Takes after her big sister." Luna's mystical voice flowed towards the duo at the end of the bench. The blonde witch put her hand on her friend's shoulder and smiled. Luna had this weird ability to comfort someone, even when they were in the worst part of their lives. The Ravenclaw looked at her friends and stood up, "well, I'm going to take a walk through the forest."

Ron's eyes bulged as he remembered the giant spiders that resided there, "The Forbidden Forest? B-but there's…there's spiders!"

Harry laughed as the memories came flooding back. Ron's face had turned the color of snow. Luna simply shook her head and skipped out of the Great Hall, leaving her friends with their mouths agape. Leave it to Luna to find a walk through the Forbidden Forest comforting and relaxing. Harry looked at Hermione and Ron, "Well, I guess we better go see Hagrid; keep him informed and all." The Golden Trio left after saying quick good byes, leaving Dean, Seamus, Cho, Aubrielle, and Neville to themselves. Neville leaned over and whispered into Aubrielle's ear, "Want to, err, go for a walk or something?" The Ravenclaw beauty nodded her head and the two stood up and left the Great Hall together.

o.O.o

"You're pretty close to your sister, aren't you?"

Neville and Aubrielle were walking slowly towards the lake. Neville had his hands in his jean pockets even though he desperately wanted to take Aubrielle's hand and hold it in his. The witch looked down at the ground the entire time they walked.

"Yeah, she's my best friend. We do everything together; she's like my other half."

"That's so cool."

"What about you? Any siblings?"

"Nah, I'm an only child. I really wish I had one though, so that I wasn't so lonely as a kid."

The duo had reached a tree and decided to sit down with their backs up against it. Neville took his hands out of his pockets and starting playing with the cold grass at his feet.

"We'll you have a lot of friends now. I think it's cool that you're so close to Harry and them. They're great."

The wizard laughed a little as he thought about the things he had done with all of them. Helping Harry through the Triwizard Tournament, joining Dumbledore's Army, fighting at the ministry… _'They really are great,'_ he thought.

"I'm lucky."

He turned to the witch sitting next to him, really looking at her for the first time. She was looking at the lake and she knew that he was studying at her, but she really didn't mind. He noticed her eyelashes that curved upwards towards her brows. They were jet black from mascara, though he could tell that she really didn't need to wear it to be pretty. Her hair was a wavy, curly mess and her top hairs frizzed out with the gentle breeze. He noticed she always wore a ring on her middle finger on her right hand. It was silver with a turquoise stone in the middle. It wrapped around her finger like a snake would wrap around someone's arm. He had noticed her wearing it before today and it most likely meant something to her. His eyes wandered down her body, taking in her curves through her tight sweater and jeans. She had hips, that was for sure. Her legs were very defined, most likely from staying in shape for Quidditch season. He shamelessly wandered to her bust. She really didn't have big boobs at all, no, they were small, but they were still there. Her arms were also shapely and they gently curved down to her slender wrists. Her hands were small, but her fingers were long; a trait that most seekers possessed. Her nails were stubby and jagged, most likely from biting them. She was nervously twitching her leg.

"You know, I've never really sat by this lake and just looked at it like this."

Aubrielle's quiet voice took Neville out of his trance and he turned his head to look at the vast water in front of him.

"Yeah, when I'm really upset, or I just want to think, I come here."

The witch turned to look Neville in the eye and he turned his head to meet her. She spoke softly, almost in tremors.

"Neville, I-I'm really afraid that we won't be able to stop Draco tomorrow."

Neville let out a sigh; he had been thinking the same thing.

"I don't know what will happen. It seems like whenever we try to plan something, we royally screw it up." Neville let out a snort at the sad fact. He and his friends were never known for having things go according to plan.

"That's comforting."

"I'm just saying. Take it minute by minute tomorrow. You can only try your best after all."

The witch looked back out to the lake, taking in it's placid exterior for what it was. She knew, though, that under the surface the lake was anything but calm. Neville courageously reached over and took Aubrielle's hand in his own, causing her to jump a little. She exhaled and curled her fingers around his.

"Tomorrow couldn't come any slower."

**:D I just think the ending is cute. Review!**


	9. Hogsmeade

**Doom Draco Day. Yeah, uh, don't have anything else to say other than read to make me happy! Actually, this chapter is going to have a lot of switches as to who is talking, POV, whatever. It may be confusing but I hope I have written it well enough so that you can follow along easily. Oh, and review! Reviews make me happy too! Shout out to PoppiiD…you're awesome! :)**

(Saturday)

"Permission slips please! Hurry up Mr. Weasley, we're waiting on you!"

Professor McGonagall bellowed at the students as they huddled in a group, wrapped in their various house scarves. Ron was digging through all of his pockets, trying to find his slip. Finally finding it in his left chest pocket, he took out the torn and folded parchment.

"Err, sorry Professor. It's a bit torn up."

Professor McGonagall shook her head and snatched the paper with her long, slender fingers, "Very well Mr. Weasley. Well, that's all of you! Off you go! Enjoy yourselves!"

The mass of students turned away from the castle and started making the journey to Hogsmeade. Harry, never being able to acquire a signature from his terrible Uncle or Aunt, was concealed under the Invisibility Cloak. He was walking about a step behind Ginny and Ron, distancing them from Malfoy and Goyle, who were walking close behind. Harry whispered in his girlfriend's ear, "Watch Malfoy behind you. He's listening." Without turning around to give away the wizard's position, Ginny nodded her head ever so slightly.

The gang was walking in different pairs at various parts of the group to not draw attention. Luna and Cho were walking at the front, by the other Ravenclaws, and Hermione was walking with the other Gryffindor boys, save for Neville. _'Neville…where is that boy?' _Harry pivoted his head, looking for the tall, dark haired wizard. He spotted him towards the back, behind the Slytherins, with Aubrielle Song. Harry raised his brow as he saw the couple. They were standing very close to each other, whispering. He knew that they were talking about today's plan but The Chosen One couldn't help but notice their close proximity and intimacy in their body language. How long had this been going on? Harry made a note to self to ask Neville about it later.

Hogsmeade's lit windows soon came into view. Normally this sight made Harry happy and feel warm. Now, he could feel his heart pounding against his rib cage. He took another glance at the two sixth years in the back of the group. Aubrielle's face grew pale as they approached the shops and restaurants. _'I wonder how she's doing.' _

.o.

Neville grabbed Aubrielle's shaking hand and gripped it tightly, reassuring her that he was there and he wasn't going anywhere. Aubrielle gladly accepted the gesture, getting use to the wizard's little displays of affection.

"Neville, my heart is beating so quickly."

"It's normal Aubrielle. You're going to be fine, I told you that already."

"Yeah but words aren't going to comfort me right now."

Suddenly the Gryffindor stopped walking and yanked the witch back. He took his hand away from hers and used his arms to pull her into his chest. He encircled her and held her there, feeling her heart beat against his torso. She brought her arms up and put them around his waist, taking in his confidence that she seemed to be lacking recently. She buried her head into his chest and breathed. _'Alright Aubs, what the Hell has been going on? Huh? You need to be strong, be brave. You need to do this for not only yourself, but for Nielah and the other Ravenclaws.'_

Neville gently put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her away to look into her face.

"Better?"

The witch smiled a genuine grin and nodded, "Better."

"Good."

Noticing that the two were significantly further back than the rest of the students, they picked up the pace to catch up. They had a Slytherin to stop.

o.O.o

Neville had to let go of Aubrielle's hand so she could join Seamus at the back door of The Three Broomsticks. Aubrielle felt lonely not having Neville next to her but Seamus seemed nice and she was always willing to make new friends. They were sitting on a stump, wands drawn, when the Gryffindor broke the silence.

"So, you're Aubrielle, right?"

The witch nodded her head and rolled her wand in her hand. She loved her wand. Nine and three quarter inches which a phoenix feather core. It was a beautiful brown color with a golden sheen. Her favorite part, though, was that there were two vine-like raised carvings, which wound all the way up to the tip of the wand.

"And you're Seamus? The one who had a knack for explosions?"

Seamus let out a hearty laugh as he heard her question.

"Yes, yes that's me. It's a gift, really. So, err, I know I don't know you very well, but you are a bloody brilliant seeker."

The Ravenclaw blushed as her record-breaking snatch played back in her mind. She really was proud of her Quidditch abilities and her team. It was one thing in her life that was constant, and she loved it. The witch smiled at the Gryffindor to show her genuine thanks. Quietness surrounded them once more but Aubrielle could tell that something was on Seamus's mind because he kept sneaking glances at her. She turned to face him and cocked her head to the side.

"Something's on your mind Seamus," the wizard quickly looked at the ground but Aubrielle pushed, "well, spit it out."

He was very quiet but the witch was still able to make out his run on words.

"."

"Hmm?"

"I, err, I'm being nosy. I just have noticed that you…and Longbottom…"

"Oh!' Aubrielle's eyes widened as she started to comprehend what Seamus was trying to say.

"I've, well we all have, been noticing that you two have been getting really close over the last week-"

"But we only started talking a week ago. Not like romantically talking, but just talking in general."

"So? People can start to have feelings for each other in that short of time. I don't know Aubrielle; I just notice you two are always together. And, when you are, Neville is really happy. Just saying."

The witch stared at him for a while before getting lost in her own thoughts. What were she and Neville? They were definitely friends by now, but was there anything more? Well, she liked it when he held her hand and he always knew how to comfort her. The witch thought back to Thursday when Neville practically shouted at her, inviting her to grab a butterbeer with him. She remembered the way his cheeks reddened and the way he averted her eyes. Had he been nervous about asking her? _'Does Neville Longbottom have feelings for me?'_

.o.

Neville and Ginny were patrolling the streets, pretending to window shop together. In reality, they were keepings their minds alert and their eyes focused on anything that would seem out of the ordinary. Nielah ran into a shop with two other young Ravenclaw girls, making Neville think of her older sister. He loved Ginny, blimey she was his best friend, but he really wanted to be behind The Three Broomsticks with her, taking Seamus's spot. Ginny saw Nielah as well and decided to bring up the Ravenclaw beauty in conversation.

"So, how are you and Aubrielle? I saw you guys holding hands at the back of the group." The red head raised her eyebrows playfully.

"She was just nervous and I was comforting her," Neville said very matter-of-factly.

"Uh huh. I'm not buying it. I think she is starting to have feelings for you too."

Neville looked through a shop window and saw a gaggle of young Ravenclaws. He nodded to Ginny and the duo stepped inside the warm building. They casually walked around, picking things up and putting them down, keeping a look out for any suspicious Slytherins. When they decided that building was safe, they stepped out of the door and kept walking down the stone street.

"Don't get my hopes up Gin. Besides, this…this thing we may have, I'm taking it slow. Like, really slow."

"I know Neville, I'm just saying, it seems like she is more comfortable, happier, when she is around you."

The wizard thought back to his more one-on-one moments with Aubrielle. He remembered when she unexpectedly wrapped her arms around his waist in a hug after their meeting at the library. His body warmed with the thought of having his arms around her. Even just moments ago, when they were walking together, she let him hold her hand. She always let him hold her hand though; she never resisted or pulled away. Neville also liked how she confided in him and told him things that were personal to her. The Gryffindor had let his mind fantasize before about the possibility of Aubrielle liking him, but now, but now… _'Merlin, does Aubrielle Song have feelings for me?'_

.o.

It was the weirdest thing; Harry had heard with his own ears that Malfoy was going to be luring Ravenclaw first years into the bathrooms of The Three Broomsticks with the help of Pansy, Blaise, and Astoria. Yet, nothing happened. When Professor Flitwick came around, rounding the students up to head back towards the castle, Harry and Ron just looked at each other with confusion. They had sat in the bathroom for 4 hours and there was absolutely no sign of Malfoy or his cronies. They slowly walked out and waited for Hermione and Luna to come out of the girl's bathroom. The two witches were just as surprised when they weren't visited by Pansy or Astoria.

"They never came in…at all."

Harry was nervously running his fingers through his hair, "Maybe Draco decided not to do it today. Maybe he knew he were on to him so he changed his plan."

Hermione shook her head as the four walked out of the pub to meet the others. While his words seemed reassuring, both teenagers knew that something else was going on; they just didn't know what it was yet.

"Yeah, that's got to be it."

The rest of the wizards and witches were waiting for them, all with the same perplexed looks on their faces. It was obvious that they didn't run into the nasty sixth years either. Harry noticed Aubrielle and Neville whispering off to the side and again caught himself thinking about the two's relationship. '_Ask Neville later, right.'_

The students started walking back to Hogwarts and Ginny came and slipped her hand into Harry's. He smiled at her warm touch and turned to admire his girlfriend.

"So, you and Neville didn't see anything suspicious?"

"Nothing. It was weird Harry. I actually never saw Draco at all. Something's not right. I can, _can_ feel it."

"Same. Hey, I don't mean to be nosy but is there something going on between Neville and Aubrielle Song? I just notice them talking a lot…"

Harry felt the witch's hand stiffen a tad in his own. He knew he was on to something now and he wanted to know more.

"Um, that's not really my place to say Harry."

"Gin I'm just curious! Besides, if something is going on between the two of them I would be really happy for Neville. He deserves a good girl."

Ginny looked over her shoulder to see the duo deep in conversation. Neville's forehead was scrunched in what looked like concern, while Aubrielle's eyes were glued to the ground.

"He does," she exhaled and looked back at her green-eyed boyfriend, "he asked her to get a butterbeer with him tomorrow since they weren't able to enjoy this trip like they should have. It's their first date-like thing, though, so I really don't want you pressuring him or teasing him."

A grin grew on Harry's face and he had that oddly familiar look of mischief. He turned back to look at the couple before putting his sights forward again.

"Oh this is gonna be fun."

The witch holding his hand suddenly let go and slapped him hard on his arm. As he let out a grunt of pain, Ginny walked in front of him, forcing him to look her in the eyes. Her face was red, almost blending with her long hair.

"Harry James! If you screw this up or make him feel bad, I will personally make your life miserable! You may be my boyfriend but he is my _best_ friend and I want him to get this girl. Got it?"

Harry stopped walking and swallowed hard. The intensity in the girl's eyes were piercing through him. He shook his head at her, making her smile. She slipped her hand back into his and started walking again.

"Good."

.o.

"Neville nothing happened…at all! That worries me! Silence is more frightening to me than sounds of battle."

Neville sighed as the witch rambled on about her multiple concerns. Sure, he thought is bloody weird that nothing happened, but at the same time he knew that there was no point in stressing about it. Harry would be doing enough of that for all of them. And by the looks of it, Aubrielle would be too. _'Merlin this girl. This girl.' _Neville changed the subject to one that was a Hell of a lot more important to him, their date for the following night.

"So about tomorrow-"

"We're still getting butterbeer, right?"

Neville chuckled at her quickness.

"Right. So I was just thinking that I could meet you outside the castle doors at…say… 7:45? And then we could walk to Hogsmeade together? Yeah?"

The Ravenclaw let a smile consume her face but tried to contain her eagerness as to not seem too excited. She really was anticipating their outing, but she wanted to play it cool.

"Sounds good Neville. Can't wait."

The witch gently reached over and took the wizard's hand in her own. This time, instead of holding handshake style, she interlaced her fingers with his. She felt Neville jump a little at the more intimate gesture, which caused her to chuckle.

'_Oh yeah, Neville definitely has feelings for me.'_

'_Merlin it's true. Aubrielle has feelings for me.'_

**I'm sorry that this chapter is a little bit on the short side. The next one will be longer. Oh, and there is going to be more drama and a twist in the near future. Review please :)**


	10. Date Night

**Hey hey hey! So yep, new chapter. This chapter is slowly easing into the twist and some of you may be upset with me by the end of this one. Don't worry…IT GETS BETTER I PROMISE. Anyway…review :)**

(Sunday)

Harry's pacing did nothing to calm Neville's butterflies that were currently invading his stomach. The Chosen One was nervously running his fingers through his hair, trying to make sense of Draco's mysterious absence at Hogsmeade.

"That git! What the Hell is he up to? As if we don't have enough to worry about!"

Ron was siting at the foot of his bed with Dean. Both boys were trying to come up with their own conclusions but weren't able to think with Harry being so paranoid.

"Maybe, maybe he couldn't do it. Maybe he doesn't have the gut to follow through with something like that."

Dean shook his head at the boy, "No, I don't think that's it. The kid has been raised by a deatheater father. I think he certainly has the will power to snatch a couple first years."

Ron smirked at the thought that just came to his mind before speaking it out loud, "Maybe the first years kicked his arse. They are Ravenclaws after all."

Ron's attempt at comic relief fell on deaf ears. Harry wasn't in the mood for jokes; he was in the mood for answers.

"No. No! Gods this is so frustrating!"

"What if it wasn't Draco's fault?" questioned Neville, "What if his friends backed out on him and he couldn't do it alone?"

Suddenly Harry stopped walking and turned to his friend that was standing against his bedpost. The wizard had his hands dug into his jean pockets and was looked like he was going to throw up from nerves.

"Pansy follows Draco around like a sick puppy. The girl is hopelessly in love with the git. She would do whatever he told her to."

This was a sad fact that Neville had not thought about before. The wizard hung his head as he thought about the situation; how nervous Aubrielle had been. _'Aubrielle.'_ He looked at the clock and saw that he still had an hour to kill before he was to meet her at the castle doors. He was dressed casually, wearing a pair of jeans and his favorite sweater, but he was freshly showered and clean-shaven. Harry had noticed his friend's suave appearance but bit his tongue when he felt the need to comment. His girlfriend's words terrified him. The two had some alone time, however, when Ron and Dean declared that they were going to the Common Room to talk to the girls. With the other two occupants gone, Harry was able to talk to Neville about Aubrielle without the risk of other people finding out about the Gryffindor's date.

"So Neville, you're looking rather dapper. Special occasion?"

The tall wizard blushed but couldn't hold back his smile, "As a matter of fact, Harry, I have a date tonight."

"With Aubrielle, I know."

Neville's jaw dropped as he looked at his friend. His brows knit in confusion as he thought back to the more recent conversations he had had with Harry. He had never brought her up in discussion so how did he… Ginny. Suddenly, it was clear to him. Ginny had told him.

"Ginny?"

Harry shook his head and smiled at his friend, "Don't be mad at her, honestly. I pushed her to tell me. I've just been noticing you two have been spending time together."

Harry walked over to Neville's bed and sat down on it, inviting his friend to do the same. The latter sat and held his hands nervously in his lap. He looked up at his friend, who had a gentle tone to his face.

"I'm so nervous Harry. I really like her. More than I've liked any other girl."

"Show her that than. Show her how much she means to you."

"But at the same time, I want to take it slow. I don't even know if she has feelings for me back, I mean, I think she might, but I'm not sure."

Harry sat there for a second, thinking about Aubrielle. She _did_ seem to like holding hands with him. The Chosen One put a soothing hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Be yourself mate and the rest will fall into place."

"B-but I'm not anyone special. I'm not Ron, the king of Quidditch, I'm not Dean, the ladies man, and I'm not you, The Chosen One. I'm just Neville Longbottom, the awkward Herbology nerd." The wizard hung his head in defeat at his own words. They were all too true in his mind.

"No! You are not just a Herbology nerd Neville. You are caring and loyal to your friends. You always want people to be happy and you always know how to cheer someone up. Aubrielle would be mad not to go after you."

Harry looked up at the clock and saw that it was thirty-five minutes after the hour. He stood up stood defiantly in front of his friend.

"Alright Neville you need to look at me," Neville slowly lifted his head up, "you are ten minutes away from meeting your dream witch for a long anticipated date. I want you to go down to her, be the gentleman that you are, and make sure that she comes back happy. Got it?"

Neville stood up, suddenly feeling stronger as he took in his friend's words of wisdom. He straightened his sweater and finger combed through his hair.

"Got it."

"That's what I like to hear."

The two boys walked out of their bedroom and down into the Common Room. Dean and Ron were in there with Ginny and Hermione. Everyone looked up when they heard Harry and Neville arrive. The latter simply smiled and headed for the portrait but was stopped by Ron's curiosity.

"Where are you going looking like that?"

Hermione slapped her boyfriend's arm, "Oh leave him alone. It's none of our business."

Neville looked at Hermione, silently thanking her. Right before he turned back to the portrait, Ginny came over and whispered into his ear, "Good luck." Neville smiled to show his appreciation and headed out of the Fat Lady.

During this time of night, most students were either in their dorms or in the library. The ones that weren't were just finishing up with a later dinner. Neville could hear his shoes hit the stone floors whenever he took a step and the noises ended up mimicking his beating heart. He walked down a flight of stairs, slowly though; to think about the girl he was about to meet. She knew he was a Herbology nerd and yet she still said yes. That reassured him more than anything. He turned the corner and was greeted by the large, wood, double doors that marked the entrance of the castle. They were slightly open, letting the cool autumn breeze flow through the vast school. He looked at the giant clock at the wall; he still had five minutes. His nerves were building by the second and he could feel his hands sweating in his pockets. He took them out and rubbed them together, trying to get rid of the moisture. He decided to list plant names; that always calmed him down.

'_Gillyweed, Mandrake Root, Bouncing Bulb, Devil's Snare, Fluxweed, Wolfsbane…_'

The wizard's mind soon drifted as he thought of his favorite subjects. He had completely lost track of time and when he looked back at the clock he saw that it was already eight. _'Shit! Wait…why isn't she here yet?'_

First, Neville checked the time again to make sure he was seeing things correctly. Yes, it was eight. He remembered that he had specifically told her to meet him here at seven forty-five.

Second, Neville checked his location to make sure he was in the right spot. Yes, he was definitely by the front doors. He also remembered telling Aubrielle to specifically meet him in this exact location.

Third, Neville checked the day of the week. Yes, it was definitely Sunday and he remembered telling her that this was the exact night they would go out. He even talked to her about it yesterday for Merlin's sake!

Neville checked the time again; ten minutes had gone by. Now the wizard was growing even more worried by the second. Had he said something wrong to her that would steer her away? Soon he couldn't help but feel defeated. _'No! Maybe she is just running late!' _He decided that he would wait for the witch and he went and sat on a near by bench. With his head in his hands, Neville started shaking. So many emotions were flowing through his mind and he couldn't sort them all out. He was nervous as Hell because he kept thinking he did something wrong, he was angry at Aubrielle for standing him up, he was sad for being stood up, he was confused about her feelings for him… Everything was becoming a blur as the minutes chipped away. All he could hear was the trivial breeze traveling in through the crack in the doors.

Neville looked back at the clock, 8:30.

Neville looked back at the clock, 8:37.

Neville looked back at the clock, 8:43.

Neville looked back at the clock, 8:50.

It had been over an hour and by now his face was streaked with tears and his cheeks were flushed. The wizard stood up in defeat and started walking back towards the Gryffindor tower. He shot his hands to his side in frustration and balled them into fists.

"Did you really think she would go for you? DID YOU? You're blind Longbottom. She's Aubrielle bloody Song and you are no one!"

His voice echoed through the empty halls of the castle. Just before he reached the Fat Lady, the wizard hit the floor and was overwhelmed by his sensation to bawl his eyes out. He sat on the floor; his back against the wall and let all his tears flow out. He didn't care that his sweater was becoming more soaked by the second, or that his eyes were red and puffy. All he could think about was Aubrielle and how she had played him. Played him like she played the Slytherin Quidditch Team last weekend. Neville hit the wall behind him, not caring if he hurt his hand, which he did. Once he was sure that he had run his tear ducts dry, Neville stood up and spoke the password to the Fat Lady. The portrait slowly swung open and the wizard reluctantly stepped into the Common Room, not ready to face his friends that could possibly be there. To his relief, the only person he saw was his best friend, the youngest Weasley child.

The redheaded witch turned and scrunched her forehead as she took in her friend's disheveled appearance.

"Neville, w-what happened? Why are you back already? You look like you've been crying."

Ginny stood up and walked over to her friend who had moved over the couch in front of the fireplace. He hung his head, embarrassed by what he was about to confess. Not only to Ginny, but to himself as well.

"S-she stood me up Gin."

The witch was silent but suddenly Neville could hear her growing angry. She paced the room all the while tightening her fists tightly at her sides.

"She what? How dare she! Who does think she is? Some big shot who is too good for you! What a…what a… what a BITCH!"

She sat down on the couch and wrapped her arms around her friend, trying to give him any sliver of reassurance that she could. The wizard shook at her embrace and tears formed from the depths of his body.

"I-it's my fault. D-don't b-blame her Gin. Please."

Ginny sat back at and looked her friend, shocked at what he had just said.

"Don't blame her? She stood you up Neville! It was her own decision and she made it. Don't defend her!"

"I GET IT GIN!"

Neville stood up and yelled at the witch next to him, much to her surprise. He turned to the fireplace and tried to control the emotions that were surging through him. Through gritted teeth he turned back to his friend. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was open.

"I get it Gin. I get that she made that decision herself. I get it."

He started walking up the stairs towards the boys' rooms, "Night."

With that he stormed into his room, leaving his friend still in shock on the couch. He had never yelled at her like that before; never yelled at anyone like that before.

He was happy to see that the other guys were gone, most likely in the library, as he started stripping out of his tear stained clothes. He threw them forcefully against the wall, releasing some aggression. He forced on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. He didn't go into the bathroom for fear of breaking the mirror upon looking into it. The wizard pulled his covers back, fell into his bed, and cried himself to sleep, not caring who heard him have his mental and emotional breakdown.

**It's short… I KNOW. And I also know that this story seems to be jumping around a lot with no conclusions; next chapter will tie it all together. AND I AM SORRY THAT YOU MOST LIKELY HATE ME FOR MAKING AUBRIELLE STAND NEVILLE UP. It was for a reason that will be revealed next chapter so please keep reading :) AND REVIEW.**


	11. The Truth

**Welp here comes the twist. It's all the way at the end though ;) READ AND REVIEW! Thank you SOOOO much to everyone that has. It makes me extremely happy!**

(Monday Morning)

Neville reluctantly threw his covers back as his alarm beeped loudly. He didn't want to go to classes today and he certainly did not want to get out of bed. He sat up and looked back at his pillow, it was stained with tears. He hadn't gotten much sleep last night, he mostly cried. And when the other boys came back from the library and saw him in his miserable state, they didn't dare ask him what was wrong.

The distressed wizard stood up and shuffled to his wardrobe. He didn't care what he looked like today; he felt he had every right to be lazy and sloppy. He had been stood up the night before! He pulled on a pair of baggy sweatpants and a plain t-shirt before putting his Gryffindor robe on over top. He went straight towards the Common Room without brushing his hair or teeth. Once outside the Fat Lady, Neville stopped dead in his tracks. A sudden occurrence pooped into his head and he quickly felt like throwing up.

What if he saw Aubrielle in the Great Hall? Should he confront her? Tell her how much she had hurt him? Would he even be able to hold himself together or would he start crying or lash out? He stood there for a second, pondering his options. He could either suck it up, be a man, and go down to breakfast, or, he could stay in the safety of his room and cut himself off from society for a couple of days. _'No, no you're being ridiculous. Show her that this won't effect you, even though it does.' _Suddenly, with his newfound confidence, Neville strutted to the Great Hall.

The wizard walked through the tall double doors and couldn't help but check the Ravenclaw table. To his extreme delight, Aubrielle was nowhere to be seen.

He went over to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Hermione, who was eating with Ginny and Dean. Everyone looked at him when he sat and took in his dejected exterior. The corners of Ginny's mouth turned downward into a frown as she studied him. She reached out to touch his hand but he quickly pulled it back, not looking for sympathy. Dean was the only one to muster up the courage and talk to his friend.

"What's up mate? You were crying last night and now you're in a bad mood today. Something happen?"

Ginny shot a look at her ex-boyfriend. He was absolutely mental for trying to talk to Neville right now. It was obvious that he was just _not _in the mood to be confronted.

Neville made an audible sigh, trying to control his emotions. He knew that as soon as he spoke the words, he would start crying. He looked down at his empty plate and closed his eyes, begging his body not to react.

"I- I just got stood up last night by a girl I r-really liked. That's a-all."

His voice shook and he could feel the wad building up in his throat. _'No! Oh, Merlin, no!'_

"Whoa. Neville, I-I had no idea. Who, who um…"

"Aubrielle Song."

A wave of silence covered the students as they heard Neville's words. Sure, Ginny already knew about his feelings, but Dean and Hermione didn't. Neville kept staring down at his plate, forcing the tears that were forming to retreat. He lost, though, when one escaped his eyes and plopped onto his plate. Hermione squirmed uncomfortably in the bench and cleared her throat. She gingerly put a hand on Neville's back.

"Neville, she isn't worth the tears. Really."

"I-I really l-liked her H-Hermione. I s-still do."

There was no point in resisting now, the tears where coming out in steady streams. Neville pushed his plate aside and hid his head in his arms so no one could see him cry. Hermione looked at Ginny, silently begging to help her. Truth was, no one knew what to say to him. He was obviously really hurt and at this point beyond reasoning. Ginny talked in a hushed whisper to her friend, "Neville, why don't you take the day off? Hmm? I'll let you copy my notes for the classes we have together. You should rest and get a hold of your…err…emotions."

The wizard shot his head up, which made Ginny nervous. She expected him to snap at her, but, instead, he simply shook his head, stood up from the table, and went back to the Gryffindor Tower.

(Tuesday)

Neville glared at the greenhouses, silently begging his feet to not move, to be suddenly cemented to the ground by some spell or charm. He had to though; he had to go to Herbology. Taking Monday off was a wise idea but he couldn't miss class two days in a row and he needed to go to Herbology. His stomach did flips as he thought about the witch that was sure to be inside. He had not seen her all day Monday or this morning so his luck was bound to wear off now. He took one step forward and his palms started sweating. He took another step and his face grew hot. Damnit, what in Merlin's beard was he going to do? Before he knew it he had reached the door to his second home. He decided that he would go and sit back at the front; at least he would be away from her.

He walked through the doors and let out a sigh of relief when he saw that the Ravenclaw was nowhere in sight. Maybe he had more luck than he thought.

Professor Sprout was delighted to see her star pupil back in his normal spot. She gave him a kind smile, "Welcome back Mr. Longbottom."

Her happiness lifted Neville's spirits, "Good to be back Professor."

Class started and soon it became obvious to Neville that Aubrielle was skipping class. _'What a coward,'_ the wizard thought to himself, '_she is skipping because she doesn't want to confront me. I thought she had more respect than that.'_

The Gryffindor pushed out his chest a little as he thought more and more about the witch's absence. At least he had the courage to face her. The fact that she was being so childish about it amused him. This little act would definitely help him get over her; that was for sure.

o.O.o

"What a… COWARD!"

"That's what I said!"

Ginny was, yet again, pacing the Common Room. It was late at night, nearly 11, but it was the first time that Neville had had a chance to talk to Ginny since Herbology. When he told her of Aubrielle's absence, the witch swirled into a furry.

"She has the guts to turn someone down and then not give them the chance to express their emotions later? She lost so much respect in my book."

Neville was sitting in the couch, quite at ease, "Hey, it'll help me get over her."

"You better get over her! You deserve so much better."

Neville was surprised that there wasn't a hole being formed in the floor from the red head's furious walking. She was flailing her hands about and the look of complete disgust painted her face. '_Note to self: Never get on Ginny's bad side.' _The wizard let out a loud yawn, signifying his want to go to bed. Ginny stopped and looked back at her best friend.

"Sorry. Lets go to bed, it's late."

"My thoughts exactly. Oh and Gin, don't let this eat away at you like I know it will. You weren't the one who got stood up."

Ginny swiveled so she was looking Neville in the eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but then shut it. He had a point, and she knew it. Unexpectedly, she ran over to the wizard and wrapped him in a hug. He returned the favor, taken back a little, and let her head rest against his chest. She murmured into his sweater, "I just want you to be happy is all."

"I am Gin, I am."

(Wednesday)

Even though it had only been a couple of days, Neville was finding that he was thinking less about the witch that broke his heart. He was going to his classes regularly and he wasn't snapping at his friends anymore. The strange thing was he never saw Aubrielle during the day. She was never in the Great Hall or the library when he was, and even stranger, he never even passed her in the hallways. He didn't think much of it, though. He simply kept the same mind set and figured she was afraid to approach him. She needed to come out of hiding soon; however, because he knew Ravenclaws, and he knew that they would _never _skip the same class twice in one week. She had to be at Herbology the next day. She just had to.

(Thursday)

"Mr. Longbottom, could you please take these notes to Ms. Song? She missed two days, which is completely unacceptable, but she needs to keep up with the lesson plan."

Professor Sprout handed the wizard a handful of parchment, much to Neville's disliking. Yes, Aubrielle had not shown up for Herbology _again,_ but Neville wasn't complaining.

"Professor I-"

"Uh shut it Neville. I know you talk to her and I can trust you. Please do it."

Before he could let out any more words of protest, the Professor quickly turned on her heel and strutted out of the Greenhouses. He looked down at the paper, cursing himself. _'Great, now I have to confront her. What is with her anyway? This isn't like her to miss classes all week.' _Neville decided it would be best to just get the task over with as soon as possible. Since he had no idea where to find her, he decided to check the Quidditch pitch first. He didn't know when the Ravenclaw team had practice, but it was worth a try.

He started marching over to the field, the thin layer of snow crunching under his weight. Neville exhaled and he could easily see his breath. It was close to winter now and the temperature was dropping. The wizard wrapped his jacket around himself tighter, trying to keep the heat in. When he reached the Quidditch pitch he could see players coming out of the locker rooms. As he got closer, he realized that they adorned scarves and hats that were green and silver, not blue and bronze. Neville quickly turned away from the Slytherin players and started heading back to the castle when he heard a scoff behind him.

"Looking for something Longbottom?"

The Gryffindor turned around to see Draco sneering at him, his face red from practice.

"Like it's any of your business Malfoy."

The Slytherin cocked his head to the side as he took in Neville's snappy response. Was he actually sticking up for himself?

"Well, look who finally decided to become a Gryffindor."

Draco pushed past him, making sure there was some force behind his jab. Neville shouted at his retreating back, "I've always been a Gryffindor!"

The blonde wizard stopped and turned back to look at Neville. With his trademark smirk and a wink he said, "Just be glad you're not a Ravenclaw."

Neville's jaw fell open as Draco walked into the castle_. 'So he _is _still planning something. I'll tell Harry as soon as I give these to Aubrielle.'_

Aubrielle, right. He had to give notes to the witch that crushed him. Feeling frustrated, Neville went back into the castle and decided to look for her in the Great Hall. When he walked in and looked over at the Ravenclaw table, he saw that it was filled with students, but none of them Aubrielle. Next, the wizard trucked to the library. Walking down the rows, constantly rotating his head to look on both sides, the wizard searched for the sixth year. Instead, all he found were some first years studying for a Potions exam and two fifth years snogging in the very back cove. Running out of locations to search, the wizard decided to try the place that should have gone to in the first place, the Ravenclaw Tower.

Upon approaching the portrait, Neville spotted a lanky fourth year and quickly pulled her aside.

"Hey do you think you could do me a favor?"

"S-sure."

"Can you get Aubrielle Song for me?"

The young girl nodded her head and ran into the Ravenclaw Common Room. While Neville was waiting for her return, he began thinking about what he should say to her. Obviously he was going to give her a piece of his mind. She really deserved it. Or maybe he shouldn't say anything to her at all. Silence is always a good way of making someone feel crappy. He looked down at the notes in his hands; no, he would not be mean. Why stoop to her level and make her feel bad? He would just be doing the same thing to her that she had to him. He quickly snapped his head around when he heard the portrait swing open. Instead of seeing Aubrielle, however, he saw the long, blonde hair of Luna Lovegood.

"Luna, where's Aubrielle?"

"I can't tell you Neville. If you have something to give her, you can give it to me and I will make sure she receives it."

Neville raised an eyebrow at his friend. She had a very underlying seriousness to her voice and he didn't like it.

"No. I need to give these to her personally. And I think I deserve the right to talk to her after what she did to me."

"Neville, trust me on this, you don't know why she did it."

The wizard's mouth fell open, was she defending her?

"I don't care why she did it Luna! The point is she did it anyway." His voice was starting to rise and to his surprise, so was Luna's.

"Just give me the notes Neville! This is serious."

"You're defending her! I can't believe it! Since when did you stop being my friend?"

"What are you talking about? You don't know the circumstances!"

"TELL ME THAN!"

The two sixth years stopped arguing when a timid first year came out of the portrait. Luna turned to her and smiled before the young one ran down the stairs. She turned back to her friend, trying to control her anger, and spoke through gritted teeth.

"Just give me the bloody notes."

"No."

"Neville you're being stubborn."

"So? So are you Luna!"

"Shh, there is no need to raise your voice. Besides, Aubrielle isn't even here and you're not going to find her. You might as well just give them to me."

"Tell me where she is."

"No."

Neville acted on instinct as he whipped his wand out of his pocket. Pointing at his friend, he took another step towards her, keeping his stance strong and steady.

"Tell. Me. Where. She. Is. Now."

Luna looked at her friend before shaking her head. This was mad!

"Neville, she doesn't want to be bothered."

"Luna, I'm warning you…"

"Put your damn wand down Neville!"

"N-" but before he could even finish his word, the witch across from him had whipped hers out as well. With a quick flick and word, "Expelliarmus!" Neville's wand was flying through the air and was quickly caught by Luna.

"Luna! Give me my wand back!"

"No! I'll let you go see Aubrielle but you cannot have your wand with you. You will not hurt her!"

Neville and Luna stared at each other, stuck in a dead lock. It was obvious that Luna was not budging on the issue so Neville put his hands up in defeat.

"Fine, fine. Just tell me where she is."

"The owlry. Be nice Neville. You don't know her story, remember that."

The wizard rolled his eyes before walking down the steps and heading to the other end of the castle.

o.O.o

As Neville ascended the stairs to the Owlry, he couldn't help but feel his nerves starting to kick in. He was finally going to confront her, the girl that broke him, and he had no idea what he was going to do. He slowly turned the corner at the top of the stairs and saw that the door was already open. Peering inside, he could see Aubrielle standing against the window. She was facing away from him so all he could see was her back, but he couldn't help but feel his heart cringe a little. Sure, he was in the process of getting over her, but bloody hell, it had only been four days and he still liked her. He wasn't afraid to admit it to himself either. What really got him is that he could see her long, dark waves cascading down her back. Snapping back to reality, Neville remembered that he was mad at her, furious at her. Without even thinking, he stormed into the owlry, heading straight at her. Hearing footsteps, the witch quickly spun around and pointed her wand straight at the intruders face. Both stopped short, however, when they saw the other person.

Aubrielle had tears falling down her cheeks, her eyes were red and puffy, and her face was blotchy. She had dark circles under her eyes and she was terribly pale. It looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her clothes her unkempt and her hair was frizzy and greasy. It looked like she hadn't showered in days either. When she saw Neville standing across from her, she started crying even harder, her tears suddenly turning into sobs.

Neville was shocked at her reaction and his anger at her faded rapidly. Now all he wanted to do was hold her.

"I-I'm so s-sorry N-Neville."

"Aubrielle w-what happened to you? Why did you decide to ditch me? Why haven't you been in class? What the hell is going on?"

"I-I know I h-hurt you. I'm so sorry."

Neville cautiously approached her, making sure to not set her off in any form. He gently laid his hand on her back.

"Talk to me please! For Merlin's sake!"

Aubrielle met his eyes but looked away. She walked over to the other side of the Owlry, but Neville followed her. When he tried to pat her on the back, she snapped at him.

"I can't tell you! Okay? I can't tell you!"

The rage inside Neville was returning just as quickly as it had left. He threw the parchments down on the floor and raised his hands in frustration.

"Can't tell me? I'm the one who waited, FOR AN HOUR! I'm the one that was let down and crushed. I have every right to know why the Hell you left me there, waiting!"

"I wanted to go on that date, trust me!"

"THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU COME?"

"Because something happened!"

"Yeah? What? Emergency choir practice?"

"Shut up! You know that it had to be something important!" Aubrielle started shaking with sobs as the pain rushed through her body. She hated this. She hated being mean to Neville, but she had to. She looked back at the wizard with pleading eyes. Could she trust him? Of course she could. She needed to tell him why she didn't show up Sunday night. She just needed to. He deserved the truth.

"Fine. I'll tell you."

Her calmness eased Neville's anger and he took another step closer to her. This time, instead of rejecting his embrace, the witch flung herself into his arms and started crying into his chest.

"Aubrielle, please tell what is going on. I can help you, promise."

The witch nodded her head before lifting her chin to meet the Gryffindor's eyes. She saw genuine concern in them. She took a deep breath and let out the air before speaking the truth.

"It's Nielah. Draco took her."

**WOAH! Didn't see that one coming, eh? Review and thanks for reading!**


	12. Decisions, Decisions

**Hello my readers! I hope you enjoyed the last chapter and the twist that went along with it. Obviously some sort of conflict is going to ensue soon. And don't worry…this IS about Neville and Aubrielle and so there will, of course, be romance. If you have enough time to read it, please take those extra 30 seconds to review! It would make me so happy! :) Oh, and this chapter is going to be shorter because I've been really busy. Sorry!**

"WHAT?"

Aubrielle collapsed on the floor, her head in her hands. Her entire body was convulsing from the sadness that was rocking her body. Neville's eyes widened as he went to the other side of the room, leaving the witch to herself. He looked out the window, letting the cold wind slap him in the face. He turned to look back at Aubrielle, whose cries had slightly decreased in intensity.

"When did you figure this out?"

Unable to look into his eyes, the Ravenclaw continued to stare at the ground, "Sunday morning. She never came home from Hogsmeade. Her friend, another Ravenclaw fourth year, said she wandered behind a shop because she thought she saw a cat. She never came…back…"

Again the witch threw herself into a fit. Neville rushed over to her and picked her up in his arms. He slowly rocked her back and fourth, letting the hate towards her run out of his body. He gently removed the hair from her face.

"Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you come to me for help?"

"I had only really known you for a week Neville! I didn't want you to think that I was weak or that I was falling back on you guys. I didn't want you to think that I couldn't protect my own sister…"

"Aubrielle I would never think that! It's okay to ask for help! Especially something this drastic."

The witch started to calm down but she still clung to Neville like her life depended on it. He simply held her tighter, trying to make her feel safe. After what seemed like hours, Neville gently nudged her.

"We need to go to talk to Harry and rest of the gang. The sooner the better."

The witch slowly stood up and nodded her head, "Okay."

The duo stood on their feet and patted their clothes. Neville walked over and retrieved the Herbology notes that we crumpled and lying on the ground. He walked back towards Aubrielle and handed them to her. She stuffed them into her robe pocket. As the two were walking down the stairs, Aubrielle reached over and intertwined her fingers with Neville's, gripping his hand tightly. He smiled at himself as he felt her warmth. _'Don't give up on her yet Longbottom.'_

Their walk back to the Gryffindor tower was silent. It wasn't an awkward silence, though, it was comfortable. Neville walked up to the Fat Lady and spoke the password. She turned to look at the boy and gave him a wink when she saw Aubrielle before swinging open. Neville felt his cheeks reddening as he stepped into the Common Room. He saw the Golden Trio seated in front of the fireplace. They all looked up when he entered, and soon their faces formed a look of shock when they saw the witch hanging on his arm.

"Hermione, can you get Ginny? And Ron, can you fetch Dean and Seamus? We need to talk about something and it's urgent."

The two Gryffindors looked at each other before shrugging their shoulders and going to their respective dorms. They returned a minute later and once everyone was situated in the Common Room, Neville started explaining the current situation.

"We were fooled back at Hogsmeade. Draco succeeded in capturing a Ravenclaw. We were too worried about the first years to notice anyone else."

Harry's face grew dark as he took in the information. He spoke softly, but there was definitely anger behind his words.

"Who's missing?"

Aubrielle's lips quivered as she answered his question, "M-my sister."

The Common Room was eerily quiet. If a pin were to drop it would echo off the walls and floor. Harry stood and looked into the fire, deep in thought. He was angry with two people right now and he tried to sort it out in his head. He was, of course, furious at Draco for doing this; for being such a God Damn git. But he was also mad at himself for letting this happen in the first place. He turned to look at the witch, now cradled in Neville's arms. She looked a mess, he hair was everywhere and her clothes were dingy and dirty. Yet, as Neville looked down at her with concern in his eyes, Harry could see why he liked her so much. She was beautiful, there was no questioning it, but she was sensitive deep down and she seemed to bring out Neville's compassionate trait. They were good for each other, period.

Harry walked over to them and kneeled down next to her, "When did you find this out? How long has it been?"

"He's had her for 5 days now."

"And you think she's still here? In the castle?"

"I know so. Draco told me."

Again the room was silent. Harry stood back up, his anger now focusing on the Ravenclaw sixth year. Why had she not come to them earlier? Why was she holding back so much valuable information?

"Aubrielle you need to tell us everything you know! He could do this again, to someone else. Listen, I know you don't us that well but, please tell us!"

Aubrielle looked up to meet the Chosen One's eyes. She saw the fury that resided inside of them and was temporarily scared of him. She came to her senses when she remembered that he was on her side. She looked back at Neville who shook his head, urging her to tell them everything. She gulped down the rest of her nerves and looked back at the group. She gently released herself from the wizard's grip and stood up.

"As soon as I knew she was missing, I went straight to Draco. I begged and pleaded, threatening to give her back to me. He acted like he had no idea what I was talking about. Then I took my wand out and told him I would hex him into oblivion if he hurt her. Then he sneered at me; that cold, unforgettable sneer. I wanted to punch him. I wanted to…to…"

She cut off again. It was still such a touchy subject to her. Her sister was still being held hostage by the deatheater. She closed her eyes, willing herself to go on.

"I wanted to kill him. I've never been so angry. Then the tall, darker one, Blaise I think, he grabbed me and pinned up against the wall, told me to shut up," the tears started rolling down her cheeks again. Hadn't she dried up her tear ducts by now? "Draco gave me an ultimatum. He said he would give me my sister back if, if, if I went along with his plan."

"What does his plan consist of?" Ron nervously asked the question, not really wanting to know the answer.

"Well, he knows I've been getting closer to you guys. H-he wanted me to lure you away Harry, get you away from everyone else. H-he wanted me to ask you for Quidditch lessons and bring you down to the pitch. When we were in the locker rooms…he was going to jump you! He was going to jump you and take you to _him_. To He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named! I can't do it!"

The witch collapsed on the floor. She really was an emotional mess. She wrapped her arms around herself and rocked back and fourth. Harry, silent until now, went over and patted her on the back.

"Shh, shh it's okay Aubrielle. When did he want you to do this?"

"Saturday, before the Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff Quidditch game. I-I've been skipping classes and trying to find her myself. I've checked everywhere; even the Forbidden Forest. I befriended a centaur and he said he would look for her. When I met him the next day he said that there was no sign of her. Not even a small one. She isn't in the Dungeons either."

"How did you get into the Dungeons?"

"Well Ron, not all Slytherins are evil. I'm really good friends with Emolly Goldster. I asked her to do a detailed search, and she did, but she found nothing. Before I told you guys, Luna and Emolly were the only ones who knew about Nielah. Emolly's been watching Draco for me too. She hasn't heard anything new that could help me. I-I-I JUST WANT NIELAH BACK."

The witch crawled over to Neville and let him wrap her into his arms again. He looked back at the rest of the group with desperation. Harry walked over to the window, thinking about Draco's proposition. Ginny got off the couch and wrapped her arms around his waist; it was hard being the girlfriend of The Chosen One. She never knew if he was going to be there the next day. Hermione walked over and sat down next to Neville. She gently ran her fingers through the crying witch's hair.

"We'll find her Aubrielle. We'll bring her back to you."

Neville took his hand and slowly massaged Aubrielle's back, which helped her relax. She really did feel safe in his arms. She could hear his heart beating against his ribcage and the steady pulse made her sleepy in a way. She really needed to sleep. She had spent the last five nights staying awake in her bed, crying.

Over in the corner, Harry finally turned around to the rest of them. Ginny looked up at him, trying to decipher his answer. When she saw a hint of sadness, she stood up in her tiptoes and kissed him gently on the lips. It was such a small gesture, but it meant so much to the two of them. When they released from each other, Harry walked over to his friends. He cleared his throat, which made everyone turn towards him.

"Aubrielle, I want you to go through with Draco's bargain."

Ron shot up and looked at his best friend, "Are you mental! He's gonna take you to bloody You-Know-Who!"

"I won't let him! Listen, we need to get Nielah back or she'll end up dead. We'll let Aubrielle lead me to him and lead me to the Quidditch locker rooms. We'll have a plan though and we'll stop this once and for all."

Hermione stood up then and looked at the wizard. She was confused and worried about his last seven words, "What do you mean, 'stop this once and for all?' Are you suggesting that we kill him?"

"I don't know what I'm suggesting really. We just need to stop him. Make it so he can't hurt anyone or serve the Dark Lord anymore."

"But Harry-"

"Shut it Hermione! I get it! We'll figure it out as we make our plan, but right now our focus needs to be on getting Nielah back!"

The wizard maneuvered over to Aubrielle and asked Neville to let go of her. The Gryffindor reluctantly took his arms away, forcing the witch to look at Harry. If looks could kill, she should be ten feet under.

"Aubrielle I need you to be strong and brave for me. For your sister."

The Ravenclaw shook her head as she stared at Harry. By his maturity, you would have no idea that he was only a kid. "Of course."

"I want you to go back to Draco, tomorrow, and say you'll do it. Tell him you'll take me to the locker rooms, but there has to be a catch. He has to have Nielah with him so as soon as you hand me over, you get your sister back."

"Harry you don't have to do all of this-"

"Yes, yes I do. Draco is messing with the wrong people. And if he wanted you to lure me to him, obviously I'm involved in this. Promise me you'll talk to him tomorrow Aubrielle."

"O-okay. I promise."

"Good," Harry turned to confront everybody, "we'll talk tomorrow about a plan but, for now, we all need rest. I know it's still early, but we all need it badly."

Dean and Seamus nodded their heads and headed up to the boys' dormitory. Ron followed closely behind after giving Hermione a kiss. Harry went over to Ginny and started talking to her quietly in the corner. Hermione looked back at Aubrielle.

"You don't have any classes tomorrow, correct?"

"Correct."

"You can sleep in my dorm tonight than. You should stay out of the Ravenclaw tower or the night. I feel like it'll only make you upset again."

Aubrielle opened her mouth to protest but Hermione shook her head.

"I'm not talking no for an answer."

Aubrielle stared at the witch. She barely knew her; yet, she was letting her sleep in her room? Not going to lie, it felt good to have friends like this.

"Okay Hermione. I will."

"Great. Come up whenever you're ready." With those words and a kind smile, Hermione vanished from the Common Room.

Harry and Ginny were still conversing in the corner. Ginny looked heated and Neville could tell that the witch did not like the idea of handing her boyfriend over to the junior deatheater. In the end, everyone knew that her opinion would fall on deaf ears. Harry was very stubborn when it came to war. Neville looked back down at the witch in front of him. Her eyelids were heavy on her eyes and they were struggling to stay open. He gently brushed her cheek with the back of his hand.

"You need sleep."

"I know."

"Lets get you upstairs than."

The Ravenclaw nodded and lazily stood up. Neville stood up as well and let the witch fall into him. She wrapped her arms around him and gave him a squeeze with the strength she had left. He took his arms and gripped her tightly, taking in the moment. He still liked her and he had silently forgiven her for Sunday. After all, her reason for not showing was definitely legitimate. Obviously, she had some feelings for him, or else she wouldn't be clinging to him like she was now. The wizard made a promise to not give up and to keep going after her. He liked her way too much to let her slip away. Aubrielle rolled her head to the side and suddenly she felt a lot heavier in the wizard's arms. He looked down to see that she had fallen asleep, standing up in his embrace. Neville smiled to himself before taking the witch and cradling her. He said goodnight to Ginny and Harry and then carried the asleep sixth year to the girls' dormitory.

**I REALLY like that ending, yeah? Review PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE! It would make me SO happy. Seriously. Do it. Now. Why? Because it would make you awesome.**


	13. Conversations and Negotiations

**Ayo! New chapter. There will be more Aubrielle and Neville in this one! YEY! Review!**

(Friday)

When Aubrielle woke up, she sat up with a start. She rubbed her eyes as she took in the room she had slept in. She immediately saw the gold and red curtains and drapes. _'Oh, right. I slept in Hermione's room.' _She looked around, trying to locate the witch. When she looked over and saw all the beds were empty, she decided to wash her face in the bathroom. She took the covers and threw them back and the motion caused a piece of folded parchment to land on the floor. The Ravenclaw bent over and grabbed the paper, slowly unfolding it in her hands. She scanned the neatly written words…

_Aubrielle, whenever you wake up, we will be in the Common Room. I felt that you should sleep as long as you need, considering your lack of it on recent nights, so I didn't bother to wake you. I went to the Great Hall and brought back breakfast for you too if you are hungry. Remember that we are on your side Aubrielle. We're your friends. Join us when you are ready. ~Hermione._

Aubrielle looked at the note and smiled. She was so happy to have these people in her life now. She took the parchment and put it in her pant pocket, planning on keeping it. She proceeded to walk towards the bathroom. She was happy to see that the Gryffindor dorms where eerily similar to the Ravenclaw ones. She looked into the mirror and stepped back as she saw her reflection. She looked horrid! She had loose makeup under her eyes and her hair was tangled and in knots. The witch finger combed through her hair, trying to get rid of the kinks. She winced as she powered through the tangles. She then took a washcloth, soaked it with warm water, and ran the towel over her face. She slowly ran it under her eyes, ridding them of her flaky makeup. After she dried her face with a new towel, she looked back into the mirror. She was pleased to see her hazel eyes glittering back at her. She really liked her eyes because they were exact replicas of her mom's. Also, due to the recent events, she hadn't seen her eyes bright in days.

She moved out of the bathroom and cautiously walked down the stairs towards the Common Room. She took a deep breath and walked through the threshold, immediately seeing Harry and Ginny in a frenzied argument. Neville, Ron, Luna, Cho, and Hermione were sitting on the couch and chairs, watching.

"Gin, it is going to work! We talked about this last night!"

"I'm sorry if I'm worried about my boyfriend! I love you Harry and I'm so afraid that I'm going to lose you! Don't you get that?"

"I get it Gin, but what you need to understand is that I'm doing this so that we can have a future! A future that is void of dark wizards and war! Damnit Gin-"

"Don't you start swearing at me Harry James or so help me God…"

The heated witch pulled out her wand and just as things looked to be turning physical, Neville sensed Aubrielle's presence and turned around to see the witch staring at the fighting couple, her eyes wide. She stepped into the Common Room and slowly walked over towards everyone else.

"T-this is my fault. You're fighting because you're trying to save _my_ sister. This is all my fault."

Neville stood up and walked around to the other side of the couch. He held his arms out and slowly walked towards her.

"No Aubrielle. This is not your fault; it's Draco's."

"No! No, it's my fault! I'm sorry for troubling you! I'm just making things worse!"

The Ravenclaw covered up her eyes and new tears started to form. She was so use to crying now that it seemed like second nature to her. Neville stepped closer to her and lightly touched her on the arm, seeing how she would react. When she didn't move, the wizard took a step closer and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned into his chest and accepted his embrace, letting the tears out. Harry, watching the two carefully, stepped towards them.

"Aubrielle this is not your fault, I promise. Ginny and I should have been having that conversation in private anyway."

The witch in Neville's arms slowly lifted her head to look at The Chosen One, who was now only about two feet away from her. Her eyes were glassed over from crying. Harry stepped closer to her and put his hand on her back, "It's not your fault, okay?"

She looked at him, studying his facial expression. All she could see was genuine sincerity. "Okay."

Harry nodded towards the couch and Neville led the two over to the rug to sit down. Aubrielle never let go of him. Harry went upstairs and returned a moment later with Dean and Seamus.

"Now that you're all here, Ron, Hermione, and I would like to go over the plan we came up with for tomorrow."

The group didn't speak, which was Harry's cue to continue.

"Aubrielle is going to talk to Draco today, agreeing to his plan. There has to be a catch though, if she is to hand me over, Draco has to give her Nielah first. We'll catch him off guard, though, because we'll have Ron, Dean, Seamus, and Neville already planted outside the locker rooms. Draco will already be in there, waiting to 'surprise' me so the guys will have to be positioned right outside all the entrances and exits. That gives Draco nowhere to run. Aubrielle, as soon as Draco hands Nielah over to you, I want you to take her and run. Cho and Luna will be outside the locker room entrance so they can help you get her back into the building. Take her to the hospital wing and make sure she isn't hurt in any way. Once we have Draco surrounded, we will restrain him somehow. Most likely stun him. After we make sure he can't do any more harm, we are going to turn him over to Dumbledore. He will know what to do with him. Nielah will be the one to protest against the git. Hopefully, he'll be expelled from school."

Ron stood up then, about to give more details. "Now, since we don't want to run into any of the Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw players before the game and risk them getting hurt-"

Aubrielle suddenly stood up, looking sick in the face. She looked at everyone, "I'm sorry. I-I can't do this." And with those words, the Ravenclaw ran out of the Common Room and through the portrait. The group was dead silent. Aubrielle's last words still rang in the room. Neville looked around at the students, unsure of what to do. He wanted to go after her, comfort her, but he felt like he needed someone's approval. As if reading his mind, Dean looked at his friend and said, "Go get her mate."

With those words, Neville got up and rushed out behind her.

o.O.o

"Aubrielle! Aubrielle!"

The witch was sprinting down the stairs, but Neville was faster. He caught up to her at the landing and grabbed her by the arm. He spun the witch around and looked her straight in the eyes, refusing to let her get away.

"Aubrielle, what is going on with you? Talk to me."

"Not here."

"Fine. Lets go for a walk."

Aubrielle, seeing the intensity in the wizard's eyes, reluctantly nodded her head. It was obvious that she was not going to win this conversation. Neville took her hand and held it in his own, his fingers perfectly fitting with hers. He walked her down the hall until they had reached the bridge. They got about halfway across it when he stopped her. The two stood there, holding each other's hands. The witch finally broke the silence when a single tear streamed down her face.

"I-I just can't do it Neville. I'm not brave like you guys are. Harry makes the plan sound so simple but in my head I keep thinking of a million scenarios and things that could go wrong. That's my Ravenclaw side for you. Neville, I just think that I'm going to mess up and I'm going to get someone hurt!"

"No, no Aubrielle don't think like that! You are brave! You are so brave! And you don't need to worry about one of us getting hurt. We're all confident in our abilities to protect ourselves for the most part. No one will get hurt."

Aubrielle looked away from him, suddenly feeling weak under his gaze. She let go of his hand and put some distance between them. Someone had already been hurt because of her and that was one person too much. She walked down the bridge, back towards the castle. She didn't want to do this right now. She didn't get far, however, before she felt a hand grip her shoulder, stopping her dead in her tracks. Neville walked around to face her.

"Talk to me please."

Those words always seemed to make Aubrielle shiver. The witch shook her head 'no.'

"Aubrielle…"

"Neville I-"

"PLEASE!"

"I-it's just, I've already hurt someone. I hurt you Neville!"

The wizard stopped moving, he stopped breathing, and he stopped thinking. The witch turned around so she wasn't facing him. Neville soon felt a pain in his chest and he remembered Sunday night; remembered being stood up by her. Was she really still on that? She was worrying about her sister and he had already forgiven her. There was something else to it and she wasn't telling him everything. He placed his hand on her shoulder but she took a step forward so it fell to his side.

"Aubrielle, you know I've forgiven you. And I'm fine, I really am."

"No! I hurt you and you know it!"

"I'm fine."

The witch started crying again, the tears flowing heavily. She stood in front of Neville, completely vulnerable. He stepped closer to her, but she took a step back. He took another step but the witch did the same thing. He stopped and looked at her, confused by her actions. He could feel the energy radiating off of her but he couldn't decipher it was anger, sadness, or…was that passion? Her lips quivered as she looked at the Gryffindor.

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. I mean, Merlin, we are in the midst of a war! How could I possibly hold a grudge, huh? What good would that do? Aubrielle, look, I could never be mad at you, really. You mean too much to-"

Suddenly Neville's words were swallowed as Aubrielle leaped towards him. The witch wrapped her arms around his neck and crashed her mouth onto his. Even though it was forceful, it was gentle at the same time. At the contact of her soft lips, Neville's entire body vibrated. He immediately gave into the kiss, wrapping his arms around her waist. There was so much energy and tenderness behind her action. It felt so natural so have her up against him, to have this kind of contact with her. Suddenly, the witch pulled away, breathing heavy. Neville felt his entire body tingling. He looked at the witch and smiled at her.

"Bloody Hell Aubrielle."

The sixth year laughed at the boy, but refused to remove her arms from around his neck. She leaned into his chest and nuzzled her head into him.

"Listen, you mean a lot to me too. You really do. You've been so kind and understanding to me. After listening to Ginny yell at Harry, after hearing her talk about how she's afraid of losing him and she never knows if he'll be back the next day, it made me realize that I couldn't keep my feelings from you anymore. And I promise, I promise I'll make up that date to you." She looked up into his eyes. Hers were now occupied with concern. "We just have to get Nielah back first."

Neville leaned down and kissed the witch again, softly and quickly. All of his dreams and greatest fantasies were coming true. There was just one bloody Slytherin git in the way.

"We will."

o.O.o.O.o

There he was, the Slytherin prince. He was casually leaning against a tree, like hostage negotiations were part of his daily life. Knowing Malfoy, they probably were. Aubrielle walked towards him as he stared out at the lake. As she got closer to him, she couldn't help but feel the anger consume her body again. By the time she reached him, she was furious. The wizard turned around and smirked at her.

"Well, well; look who finally came to her senses."

"Shove it Malfoy. I just want to get this over with."

"Fair enough. So you'll bring Potter to the locker rooms tomorrow?"

Aubrielle clenched her fists and spoke through gritted teeth, "Yes."

Draco smiled at her as he took in her frustration. He held out his hand to shake hers, "Pleasure doing business with you."

Aubrielle looked at his hand with disgust. There was no way in Hell she was going to touch him.

"Not so fast Malfoy. I want Nielah there. I want you to give her to me first; before I hand over Harry."

Draco stared at the Ravenclaw; his eyes narrowed. He couldn't believe that this witch was bargaining with him.

"Or what?"

"Or I won't bring you Harry. Your choice."

The Slytherin scoffed, which took Aubrielle off guard. He casually put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the tree again.

"Well, look who knows how to play the game. Never would've guessed. Fine, your bloody sister will be with me."

"And you'll hand her over to me _first_?"

"Yes, yes. I may be evil, but I have some integrity. You'll get her first."

Aubrielle studied Draco's expression. There was something so unsettling about him. He made the hair on her arms stand up. She puffed out her chest and put her shoulders back, trying to seem as big as possible.

"Good. So tomorrow, an hour before the game?"

"An hour before the game."

With those words, the wizard stood straight up and pushed past Aubrielle. She stared at his retreating back as he walked back into the castle. She hated that the encounter was so casual to him. How could someone be so cold hearted? How cold someone support the Dark Lord and his evil views? Aubrielle was flabbergasted at Draco Malfoy. Something must have gone seriously wrong when he was little to have him turn out like this.

The witch turned back towards the lake, a new thought in her mind. Tomorrow she would have her sister back. Tomorrow Nielah would be back in her arms where she knew she was safe. Aubrielle smiled at the thought of her sister. She would tell her all about her new friends and what they were sacrificing for her. She would tell her about Harry's courage and Hermione's kindness; and she would tell her all about Neville. She will talk about how she was falling for the Gryffindor Herbology nerd who made her feel safe from everything bad in the world. Yeah, she would tell her about how her life was getting a Hell of a lot better. Well, she would tell her all of these things once she got her back.

**Sorry for the short chapter. Just like the Hogsmeade chapter, I wanted the whole action scene in the same chapter and if I added it onto this one, it would be terribly long. Review por favor!**


	14. Doua Sansa

**Read and Review!**

(Saturday)

It was 10:30 and the Quidditch game started at noon. That meant that Aubrielle had 30 minutes before leading Harry to the locker rooms. Thirty minutes until their plan would commence. Thirty minutes until she had her sister back.

The witch was sitting across from Harry at the Ravenclaw table in the Great Hall. Aubrielle had on her team sweater and Harry was dressed in a flannel. It was just the two of them sitting at the table; everyone else was in the dorms, mentally preparing for today's match. Aubrielle could feel Draco staring at her from across the room even though she had her back turned to him. Gods she hated him.

The duo was eating lunch and quietly talking about the plan. Harry could tell that the witch was uncomfortable, though, so he decided to change the topic. He wasn't sure if she wanted to talk about his next choice either, but he didn't care.

"So…Aubrielle…you and Neville?"

She practically spit out the pumpkin juice that she was sipping on when she heard his question. Or was it an accusation? She swallowed hard and looked back into the wizard's eyes. He was smirking at her, knowing he had hit the nail on the head.

"Uhm, what about it?"

"Alright Aubrielle, you two may be able to fool everyone else, but not me. I see the way you guys cling to each other. Admit it; you like Neville Longbottom."

Harry leaned back a little, a huge smile occupying his face. He was having way too much fun with this. Aubrielle folded her arms on the table and put her face in them. She said something but Harry couldn't hear through her sweater.

"FineIlikehimokay?"

"What did you say?"

"Ilikehimokay?"

"Aubrielle, I can't hear you."

Suddenly the witch shot her head up and Harry got the response that he was looking for. She practically screamed it at him actually.

"I LIKE HIM, OKAY?"

"I knew it!"

"Shut up Harry!"

Again the witch put her head into her arms as the Gryffindor started laughing. It was cute how embarrassed she was getting about it. He could see the red creeping into her cheeks and ears. He leaned forward and put a gentle hand on her back.

"Hey, hey Aubrielle, it's okay that you like him! I think you guys are cute."

The Ravenclaw lifted her head up cautiously, "You do?"

"Yes. You guys bring out the best qualities in each other. He makes you open up and makes you more caring and passionate. You make him more loving and happy."

"I-I never looked at it like that."

"Aubrielle you need to trust yourself more. You need to trust that you have an impact on people. Listen, I don't know exactly where you and Neville are but-"

"We kissed yesterday."

Now it was Harry's turn to be taken aback. The wizard's mouth fell open as looked at the blushing witch. He tried to speak but he couldn't seem to form actual words.

"Wh-en-huh?"

Aubrielle kept her eyes on her plate of food as she talked, "Yesterday morning. After he chased after me when I stormed out. I kind of jumped him actually. What Ginny was yelling at you, about her not knowing if you would be okay the next day, it made sense to me. I don't know if he'll be okay after our mission."

Harry was silent for a while. Aubrielle forked some food into her mouth, trying to fill in the void that she had caused. It didn't work. Harry looked back at her, opened his mouth to talk, but then closed it again. Finally, he spit out what he trying to say.

"You want to know something?"

"What?"

"Yesterday was the first time Ginny said she loved me. And it was when she was mad at me. Do you know how much that worries me? That she can only bring it up when we're fighting?"

"Harry, she loves you. She loves you so much. It might not have been the way you wanted her to say it but-"

"And I didn't say it back. Why didn't I say it back?"

"You were heated, in the moment."

Another awkward silence emerged as Harry put his head in his hands. He was obviously upset with himself and the witch didn't know how to console him. She was saved when the clock rang out, signifying the top of a new hour. She looked over at Harry, whose face grew serious. He stood up and looked down at her, all previous thoughts leaving his mind.

"It's time."

At his words, Aubrielle started to lightly shake. She was about to do a hostage negotiation to get her sister back from a deatheater. What had her life become?

o.O.o

As Aubrielle walked towards the locker rooms, pretending to have a casual conversation with Harry, she couldn't help but notice her heart pounding in her chest. It was so loud that she could have sworn he could hear it. She was carrying her broom in one hand and Harry had his as well. They slowed a little when they reached the door. The Gryffindor looked over at the witch and gave her a small smile. She returned the gesture but both students knew that it wasn't genuine. She was scared shitless.

They entered the room and kept their conversation going. Harry walked over to his locker, set down his broom, and took out his flying cape. He slipped it on and tied it while Aubrielle put on her gloves.

"So what exactly do you want to learn, Aubrielle?"

"Ummm, well I was thinking that you could show me how to do a backflip on my broom to change directions. If that's okay with you, I mean."

Aubrielle let a little laugh release inside her head. She knew perfectly well how to execute that move. She had done it the year before and it actually helped her defeat Harry and the Gryffindor team for first place in the tournament. Harry remembered that game perfectly well and he cringed a little at her comment.

"Sure. Sounds great."

After both players had all their gear on and were headed towards the pitch, Aubrielle felt someone grab her shoulder. She was abruptly pulled back and a wand was soon at her throat. She looked down at the hand that was restraining her and panicked. It wasn't Malfoy's like she expected. Instead, she saw the tan hand of Blaise Zabini. Her eyes widened with horror as she realized what was happening; Malfoy had brought his pose with him.

She looked up to see that Crabbe had a tight hold of Harry, whose wand was lying at his feet. Draco coolly stepped out from the bathroom, dragging Nielah behind him. Her face was pale as death and her eyes had large, dark bags under them. At the sight of her obviously malnourished sister, Aubrielle kicked and wrestled against Blaise. The wizard was stronger than her, though, and he tightened her grip on her, making her wince in pain. Malfoy sneered at the two students.

"Thought I wouldn't bring help, did you? Your mistake."

"GIVE ME NIELAH!"

Draco walked over to her, standing dangerously close. She could smell him and feel his breath on her face as he spoke to her.

"Did you actually think I would stay to my word, you filthy half blood? I'm a bloody deatheater."

He walked away from her and Aubrielle could see that Pansy was now the one restraining her little sister. She could feel her blood boiling as Draco continued to smirk at them. She hated him! Harry fought against Crabbe for his wand but it was no use. They were outnumbered and out muscled. Suddenly something clicked in Harry's mind and he remembered that his friends were standing outside of the tent, waiting for his cue. Sucking in his breath and getting in as much air as he could, the wizard let out a single, deafening scream.

"NOW!"

To Aubrielle's relief, Neville, Ron, Dean, and Seamus came running into the locker room, their wands drawn. They circled around the Slytherins, prepared to fight. Neville's heart leapt as he saw Aubrielle struggling against Blaise. He wanted to run over and punch the Italian bastard but he knew he had to stick to the plan. Dean took a step closer to Draco with pure hate in his eyes.

"Let them go Malfoy. You are outnumbered. There is no point in fighting. Besides, you don't want the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff Quidditch teams to get involved in this, do you?"

"Oh really? You think I didn't know of your little plan? Well, you've underestimated me. I already threatened Madame Pooch to cancel the game or else her job would be at stake. No one is coming and no one is going to hear you."

As soon as the junior deatheater spoke his last word, a get of blue light whizzed from across the room and hit Dean in the chest, sending him backwards into the wall. The wizard was knocked unconscious and everyone turned to look at who had cast the spell. Little Astoria Greengrass stepped out from behind a locker with a satisfied smirk on her face. Draco smiled at the Slytherin, "Nicely done Astoria."

The witch smiled at the boy and soon a battle ensued. Pansy let go of Nielah to duel with Seamus and the young Ravenclaw barely had the energy to stand. Lost in a moment of shock, Blaise loosed his grip on Aubrielle and she was able to wiggle free. She sprinted to her sister and knelt down beside her. Cradling her in her arms, Aubrielle started crying at the thought of what Nielah most likely went through. She looked up when someone screamed her name and saw that a streak of white light was crashing towards her. She pushed both her and her sister to the side and missed the curse by centimeters. She saw Theo Nott emerging from a dark corner. She helped her sister stand and started heading towards the exit to where Luna and Cho would be waiting for her. As planned, the two witches were there, but Aubrielle was stopped short when Theo grabbed her long hair and pulled her back into the tent. Aubrielle pushed her sister forward towards the two Ravenclaw girls.

"Run Nielah! Go with Luna and Cho! GO!"

Her sister did as she was told and soon the three girls were heading back into the castle. For a moment, Aubrielle was relieved. Her sister was safe now. She was immediately snapped back to reality, however, when she felt a surge of pain rush through her body. Theo had forcefully yanked her hair and she could have sworn that her head was bleeding. She got a quick glimpse of everyone as he let go of her. Everyone had his or her own duel going on and Aubrielle felt so helpless. Theo let out a chuckle before pointing his wand at her.

"Crucio!"

Aubrielle hit the floor, causing her head to spin. She could feel the curse starting to take over her body, but she fought against it and tried to fight her opponent.

"Expelliarmus!"

Her enchantment just barely missed Theo's hand and the wizard laughed at her pity spell.

"Is that the best you can do? I thought you were a Ravenclaw." 

He twisted his wand in his hand, causing Aubrielle's spin to morph into a terribly painful position. She screamed out as the pain became overwhelming. She opened her eyes and tried to see through her thick tears. There was so much fighting going on that she felt sick. Harry was dueling Draco intensely while Ron and Seamus were trying to make work on Crabbe and Goyle. They looked like they were doing well because soon the two Slytherin's were backed up into a corner. Hermione and Ginny had come to help as well and were up against Pansy and Astoria and Aubrielle felt a twitch of pride when Hermione effectively sent Pansy crashing to the floor, knocking her unconscious. She was surprised, however, to see that Astoria was holding off the two Gryffindors with little effort. When the Hell did she become such a powerful witch?

Another shock of agony hit the witch's body as Theo chuckled at her weakness. He leaned in closely to her and whispered in her, making her shiver in fear.

"You messed with the wrong people beautiful. You're going to beg for death when I'm done with you."

He leaned even closer and gave a little kiss on her ear, causing her to fill with anger and hatred. She lifted her wand towards her attacker but he soccer kicked her hand. She heard the bones crush as he made contact with her and her wand went flying across the room. She yelled out as she cradled her now broken hand in her chest. Theo simply snickered at her and sent another wave of the spell through her struggling body. She was fighting to stay conscious as he tortured her. While she was on the floor, a million thoughts were flying through her mind. She was wondering if she was going to live after this or if Nielah was going to become an only child. Was Nielah even okay? She felt like crying out for help but everyone else had their own problems to worry about. She rocked back and fourth, trying to endure the pain and trying to keep hope alive.

The hurting suddenly ebbed and the witch looked up at the bastard. Neville was standing in between her and Theo, daring the wizard to cast another spell.

"Ha! You think you're going to stop my Longbottom? I'll make sure you end up just like her!"

"I stopped Blaise, you git, and I can stop you too!"

Theo suddenly looked around and saw that his friend was lying face down on a bench. He could see that he was breathing, that and Longbottom didn't have the guts to kill, but he still wanted revenge for his friend.

"I'll show you, you filthy Gryffindor!"

But before Theo could cast the Unforgivable Curse at Neville, the opposing wizard let the spell escape his mouth quickly. 

"Petrificus Totalus!"

The Slytherin froze up and hit the floor with a hard thud at the same time Aubrielle's body shut down and blacked out.

o.O.o

Neville looked over in time to see Aubrielle's eyes roll back into her head and her neck flop the side. He rushed over to her, immediately overcome with panic. He put his fingers to her throat, praying that she still had a pulse. He felt a faint beat but if he didn't do something soon she was going to die. He hoisted the witch into his arms and starting sprinting towards the castle, not even thinking about the battle that he was running away from. He had faith in his friends and their abilities. She was heavy in his arms from being dead weight and Neville picked up the pace. He considered taking her to the Hospital Wing but that would mean climbing up multiple flights of stairs and he didn't have enough strength left in his body to do that. Thinking of the only other option he had, the wizard bee lined it towards the potions classroom.

The wizard kicked the door open and gingerly set Aubrielle's limp body down on a desk at the front of the classroom. He looked back at her, tears swelling up in his eyes. She was contorted very badly and even though she was seconds away from death, her face still had a pained expression on it. Neville quickly whipped away his tear and walked over the cabinet to get the ingredients he needed.

"Think Longbottom! A potion to bring someone back. A potion to heal. A potion…DOUA SANSA!"

The wizard remembered the potion that Aubrielle had helped him learn about those weeks ago in the library. If only Snape could see him now.

He quickly filed through the cabinet and hastily found the tiny vile full of a crimson liquid.

"Dragon blood."

He then reached to the very back of the shelf and found a glass jar with a thick, honey colored goop in it.

"Moondew."

The wizard started opening and closing drawers as he searched for his last three ingredients. He quickly looked back at Aubrielle and alarm rushed through his body when he didn't see her chest rise. He swiftly turned back to the cabinet, a fire now under his ass. He found a small cardboard box with a big 'D' on it and was relieved to see that it contained dittany. He picked it up and set it down by the other ingredients.

"Okay, two more."

Neville was then able to locate the small leather pouch with the dry, grass like material in it.

"Fluxweed. Now where are you phoenix feather… AH HA!"

His eyes lit up as he opened the next drawer and saw the long red and orange feathers. He snatched one out of the bag and put the ingredients on the table next to Aubrielle. He reached over and grabbed a large wooden bowl. He then slammed all the ingredients into it at once and took a stone grinder and started smashing up the dittany, phoenix feather, and fluxweed. Once all the ingredients were mixed and were at about the same consistency, Neville took the ladle he had found and scooped up the potion. He gently swung it towards the dying witch and forced her mouth open with his free hand. He smoothly lifted the ladle, not wanting to spill any, and poured the liquid into her mouth. Once all of it was gone, he threw the ladle to the side and shut her mouth close. Now sobbing, the wizard hovered over the witch. She meant so much to him and now that she was in his life, he would damn well do anything to keep her there. He didn't even bother removing the tears from his cheeks as he watch the still witch.

"C'mon Aubrielle breathe! Please breathe! DAMNIT BREATHE!"

**I got chills writing that chapter. Hope you like it! REVIEW PLEASE!**


	15. Breathing

**Sorry that I left you all in suspense my readers! It's out of love…I swear! PLEASE REVIEW! Thanks for reading! Also, my story will now become 'M' for a dream sequence in this chapter. It's nothing too bad but I thought I should be on the safe side. **

(Saturday)

Neville had never really experienced that saying; 'time stands still,' until now. His entire body was shaking as he looked at the motionless witch lying on the table in front of him. The sobs were washing over him in waves and soon his emotional state switched over to hysteria. It had only been mere seconds but he felt like she should have reacted to the Doua Sansa by now. The wizard gently took his hand and removed a piece of hair that was lying across her cheek. He was somewhat relieved when he felt that her skin was still warm to the touch. He looked down into Aubrielle's face and continued to cry his eyes out. He liked her so much it was unhealthy. He had always liked her and he always will. And now that he knew she felt the same way back, he was falling quicker for her than he had ever imagined. In these two short weeks of getting close to her, he was slowly realizing that loving her wouldn't be hard. But he wouldn't be able to show her how much he loved her if she didn't react to the potion. If she didn't react to the potion, Aubrielle Song would be dead within the hour. Feeling defeated and helpless, Neville slumped to the floor and hid his head in his arms. He wept until he ran his tear ducts dry, took a breath, and did it all over again_. 'Please breathe Aubrielle. Please breathe Aubrielle. Please breathe Aubrielle. Please…'_

(Saturday Night)

Peering through the slits of his eyelids, Neville could begin to make out the crisp white features of Hogwarts's medical wing. He fully opened his eyes and realized that he was slumped over in an armchair. He straightened his back and heard it give its release through multiple cracks and pops. How had he gotten here? What day was it? How long had he been out? He looked around the room, hoping that he would somehow find the answers suspended in mid-air. His pulse started racing when he thought about the reason why he would be there in the first place. Not even thinking, the wizard screamed out to anyone who could hear.

"AUBRIELLE! AUBRIELLE!"

Madame Pomfrey came rushing from behind a curtain with a glass of water in hand. Neville continued screaming as he jumped out of his chair. The small witch ran over to him, took the glass of water, and forcefully splashed it on his face. The Gryffindor jumped back in shock and fell back in the chair. The witch now stood over top of him as he whipped his face with his shirtsleeve.

"Mr. Longbottom, get a hold of yourself! You'll disturb the patients if you carry on like that and I'll have to ask you to leave."

"W-What day is it? What time is it?"

"It is still Saturday Mr. Longbottom but it is close to eleven o'clock at night."

"And how did I get here?"

"Well Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley found you and Ms. Song in the Potions classroom. Mr. Potter carried Ms. Song here and Mr. Weasley was able to hike you over his shoulders. He said it was important that you stay with Ms. Song."

"AUBRIELLE! Where is she? Is she okay? Please tell me she's alive!"

"Mr. Longbottom, lower your voice!"

"S-sorry. I just want to know about Aubrielle. Please tell me she is okay!"

"As a matter of fact, she is fine. She will live and she has you to thank for that. If you hadn't made that Doua Sansa, she would be dead. That was actually a flawless batch that you made Mr. Longbottom. I've only seen highly educated professors make it with that much consistency. You should be very proud of yourself."

Neville let out the air he was holding in and relaxed in the chair. He had done it; he had saved Aubrielle's life. His eyes began to swell up as tears of joy started streaming down his face. He couldn't help but smile at his body's reaction to the news. He really did love her and this was his tangible proof. He stood up and looked Madame Pomfrey in the eyes.

"Can I see her please?"

"She is still sleeping Mr. Longbottom but I will lead you to her nonetheless."

The witch started walking towards the other end of the wing and soon she was pulling back the curtains to a closed off bed. Neville cautiously entered the private area as he took in the scene. Aubrielle was lying on her back and she was as pale as a ghost. In the chair next to her sat Nielah, equally as pale, holding her sister's hand. Madame Pomfrey stepped back and let the curtain close, leaving the three students alone. At the sight of Neville, Nielah let go of the witch's hand and flung herself at him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and sobbed into his abdomen, despite barely knowing him. All she knew was that he was her sister's savior and that was good enough for her. He held the fourth year tightly and tried his best to comfort her. The little one lifted her head back to look up into his eyes. She had tears streaming down her face and her eyes were red. Through the sobs Neville could make out the words.

"T-thank y-you so m-much."

Neville's eyes swelled as he looked down at her. He picked her up and took her into his arms. He walked over to the chair and sat down in it with Nielah holding onto his chest. The fourth year's cries slowed down and soon she was asleep from exhaustion. Neville gently stood up and set Nielah back down in the chair. He walked over to where Aubrielle was lying and bent over to gingerly kiss her on the cheek. He then walked over to the curtains and pulled them back so he could exit the small make shift room. He called out for Madame Pomfrey and soon stood next to the healer.

"Yes Mr. Longbottom?"

"What is the extent of Nielah's health?"

"She came in exhausted, dehydrated, and in serious need of food. After giving her some medicine and bread, her pulse went back to normal. She'll be fine as well. She just needs to drink a lot of liquids in the next week or so."

"Okay, I'll make sure she does."

"Any more questions Mr. Longbottom?"

"I don't have anymore questions, just a request."

"What is it?"

"Can you please notify me when Aubrielle wakes up? No matter how late it is?"

"Of course Mr. Longbottom."

"Thank you."

Neville politely smiled at the witch before heading out of the wing and down to the kitchens. It was late and he knew the Great Hall was closed but he was hoping one of the elves could get him some left overs. His stomach rumbled, confirming his hunger. He walked up to the kitchen door and gave it a light knock. The bottom half slowly opened and Neville saw a young elf standing at his feet.

"What can Rusty get for Master Longbottom?"

"Do you have any leftovers from dinner?"

"Of course. Rusty will prepare a plate."

The elf vanished inside of the kitchen and soon returned with silverware and a steaming plate of mashed potatoes and turkey.

"Thank you Rusty."

"It is an honor Master Longbottom."

The elf bowed deeply and retreated back into the kitchen, closing the door behind him. Neville sat down on the floor and propped his back against the wall. He devoured the meal in a matter of minutes and the elf came back to take away his dish and utensils. The Gryffindor then stood up and started walking back towards the dorms.

He was absolutely exhausted and the walk was taking him longer than necessary. He just couldn't find the energy to move his feet any faster. As he lazily walked towards the Fat Lady, the wizard thought about the witch that was asleep in the medical wing. She was his dream witch and he had saved her life. He had done it all by himself too which was a small miracle in his eyes. Normally under moments of pressure he choked so he was thankful that he could keep his cool for those minutes when he needed to. He reached the Fat Lady and mumbled the password. She seemed upset to be woken from her slumber but she opened the door at Neville's voice. The wizard stepped into the Common Room to see that Harry was still up. He was sitting on the couch and was staring into the fire. At his friend's entrance, he stood up and helped guide him towards the armchair. Neville hit it with a thud and was happy to feel his body relax.

"Will Aubrielle be okay?"

"Yeah. Madame Pomfrey told me I saved her life."

"Well when me and Ron found you two, you both looked dead."

"Thanks for that Harry. Thanks for taking her to the medical wing."

"Of course, of course."

The two boys were quiet for a while and Neville enjoyed the heat that was emitting from the fireplace. Harry had a troubled look on his face and Neville couldn't help but worry about the day's mission. Had something gone wrong after he had left? Did Draco get away free of harm? Neville fought the urge to sleep so he could ask Harry his questions.

"Harry what's wrong? Did everything go according to plan?"

"For once it did. Draco and the rest of the Slytherins that helped him were taken to Dumbledore. He's dealing with it now. No doubt they'll are be expelled. Theo might even go to jail for using an Unforgivable on Aubrielle."

Neville cringed as he pictured the witch's deformed body in his mind. He shook his head to release the image.

"Why do you look so troubled than mate?"

"I-it's silly really. Just thinking about something."

"About what?"

Harry took a deep breath and continued to look into the fire. He felt that Neville would find his problem so trivial so he was skeptical to tell him about it.

"Well the other day, when Aubrielle walked in on me and Ginny fighting, that was the first time Gin has ever told me that she loves me. A-and I didn't saw it back."

"Oh come off it Harry. You guys were in a heated argument. It wasn't really the right time to say it anyway."

"I know, I know. But it just got me thinking about our relationship. She was right after all. One of us could have been killed today. I know the Killing Curse wasn't actually being used, but look at how far Theo tortured Aubrielle. What if that had been Ginny? She could have died today and she would have never known that I…I love her too."

The Chosen One let an unspoken tear trail down his cheek and off his chin. Neville stared at his friend in awe. He had never seen Harry cry. When Sirius died, sure he was upset, but he never actually cried in front of his friends. It was nice to see Harry so upset in a sense. He seemed human.

"But she didn't die Harry. That's what you need to remember. Why don't you go up there right now and tell her how you feel? There's no time like the present."

Harry sat there, thinking about what his friend had just said. The wizard suddenly stood up with a new confidence and smiled at his friend.

"You know what…you're right. I'm going to tell her and I'm going to do it right now!"

With those words, he walked out of the Common Room and up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. Neville smiled at himself as he watched him go. He knew that deep down the two Gryffindors loved each other; they didn't have to say it. Neville hoped that one day he could have that same euphoria with Aubrielle. He hoped that one day they would be so wrapped up in each other that they wouldn't even need to say the words to know that it was true.

The wizard's eyelids grew extremely heavy and he decided to give in and let sleep overcome his being. His head fell to the side and within seconds he was fast asleep.

o.O.o

_The sun was hitting her face at the perfect angle, making her hazel eyes absolutely mesmerizing. Her long, dark hair had a mouthwatering shine to it and Neville wanted to reach over and run his fingers through it. She was lying on the grass, looking up at the clouds go by. He was lying next to her but he was watching her rather than the sky. In between them were their hands, perfectly interlaced with each other. Suddenly the witch rolled over and her head was on his chest. She took her hand and gently traced shapes on the wizard's stomach, making his insides flutter. Every time she touched him his body reacted as if it was the first time. He loved every second of it. _

"_You know," she said, gently rubbing her cheek against his t-shirt, "today is our one year anniversary."_

_Neville smiled to himself. He knew exactly what day it was. He had to pinch himself this morning when he woke up to make sure he wasn't dreaming. _

"_I know."_

_She sat up on her elbows so her face was only inches from his own. She leaned in closer so that he could smell her flowery perfume._

"_It's been the best year of my life."_

_Neville barely whispered, "me too," before his lips were connected with hers. Neville poked her lips with his tongue and as his girlfriend let him deepen the kiss, he pulled her up so she was lying on top of him. He had his hands tangled in her soft curls and she was running her hands under his shirt. He rolled over so she was now on the bottom and in one sift movement, removed her blue t-shirt. The witch gasped as the wizard maneuvered his hands under her bra, pushing it upwards. He stared down greedily at her perfectly rounds breasts. Aubrielle gave out a light moan as he seized one with his mouth and started kneading the other one with his free hand. The witch started bucking her hips against his when Neville decided to trail kisses down her abdomen. When he reached the top of her jeans, he expertly unbuttoned them and slid them down her slender, yet shapely, legs. He moved his head back up to her face and started kissing her fiercely, as if his life depended on it. His girlfriend moaned into his mouth as he inserted a finger into her center and curled it upwards so it hit her G-spot. He continued to move it in and out and soon he put in another finger, and then a third. Aubrielle started moving rapidly under his body while letting out louder and longer moans and he could tell she was reaching her climax. To confirm his prediction, she arched her back into him and let out a loud, "Ohhhhh Neville!" The wizard felt her insides tighten around his digits as her body's natural juices covered his hand. He pulled out of her and flopped to the side so he wasn't putting his weight on her anymore. The witch stayed still for a moment, catching her breath. She looked over at her best friend, boyfriend, and lover._

"_I love you Neville Longbottom."_

"_And I love you, Aubrielle Song."_

o.O.o

"Mmmm ugh."

Neville's back was killing him as he woke up. He opened his eyes to see that he was still slumped over in the armchair in the Common Room.

"I gotta stop waking up in places other than my bed."

The wizard went to stand so he could go to his dorm when he felt a painful rustle on his thighs. He looked down to see that he was sporting an erection and immediately reached for a pillow to hide it. Realizing that no one was around, it was early in the morning, he quickly darted up to his room and flopped under the covers. He looked back down at his hardened member as he remembered the beyond amazing dream he had just had.

"Bloody Hell." 

He let his body rest against his soft mattress and he was soon a prisoner of sleep once again.

**Welp I hope you liked it! REVIEWS PLEASE!**


	16. Awake

**This chapter is pretty much ALL Aubrielle and Neville :) I hope you enjoy! P.s. This is my longest chapter yet! Yey! Read and Review!**

(Sunday)

Neville was trying to study for his Potions exam in the Great Hall but had difficulty doing so with Harry and Ginny making kissy faces at each other next to him. Ever since Harry had confessed his love to his girlfriend, they had become even more inseparable than they were before. Sure, they were perfect for each other and the wizard was partly to blame for it since he was the one that told Harry there 'was no time like the present,' but it was almost disturbing how much they were on each other. Neville felt his dinner coming up by the second. He gathered his things and decided to try the library. He said goodbye to the couple and marched out of the Great Hall, shaking his head along the way. Once in the library, Neville cozied himself down in a quiet cove that was towards the back. He took out his Potions parchment and started scrolling down the long list of concoctions. He smiled to himself when he read the potion Doua Sansa. His smile soon turned to a frown; however, when he thought about the witch he had made it for.

Aubrielle still hadn't woken up. She had been out for over twenty-four hours and Neville desperately wanted to see her; talk to her. It was hard to concentrate on his assignment as his mind wandered to the Ravenclaw beauty. About an hour ticked by and Neville found himself fighting sleep yet again. He perked up when he heard footsteps echoing through the library. The steps were getting closer to him and he jumped a little at the sight of the elf. Judging by the perfectly white sheet and the Red Cross on the front, the wizard came to the conclusion that the elf was from the medical wing.

"Master Longbottom?"

"Yes?"

"Madame Pomfrey sent me to tell you that Madame Song is awake."

"OH! Yes, yes, yes. Thank you so much…errr…"

"Marbles, sir."

"Marbles. Err yes. Thank you so much."

The elf gave a low bow before walking out of the library. Neville quickly shoved all his books and school supplies in his bag and rushed out. His stomach soon filled with butterflies as she ran towards the medical wing. He was so excited so see her and talk to her that his head was spinning in anticipation. He ran into the wing and flung his bag on the closest chair he saw. As he approached the curtains that hid the witch from him, he stopped short to take a deep breath. He slowly reached forward to grab the drape and pulled it back.

Aubrielle was sitting up in the bed, drinking some sort of healing potion. At the sight of Neville, Madame Pomfrey quickly set the glass down on the nightstand and scurried away, letting the two students be by themselves. Aubrielle smiled at the wizard as he came in and sat in the armchair next to her.

"Hey."

"Hey. Where's Nielah?"

"I told her to go to the Great Hall and eat. She's so malnourished."

"Yeah I know. I saw her yesterday but you were still asleep."

The couple was quiet for a moment and Aubrielle nested back down into her bed. She rolled over onto her side so she was looking at the wizard that had saved her life. She smiled at him as she reached over and grabbed his hand. She brought it over so it rested on her cheek. He smiled at her. He was happy to feel her skin hot again against his.

"Thank you so much."

"Aubrielle it was nothing-"

"Nothing my ass. You saved my life Neville. I owe you everything."

"No, you don't owe me anything at all."

"Oh shh. Stop being so proud and accept it."

She smiled playfully at him and he could tell that this was going to become a game between them.

"Nope. Never going to."

"Neville…"

"Aubrielle…"

"Fine. Then I won't give you what I was about to give you."

"What were you about to give me?"

"Well I'm not telling you now!"

"That's not fair!"

"Yes it is! Just stop being proud! Let me repay you! You saved my life for Merlin's sake."

"But Aubrielle I didn't do it to get a reward!"

"Please just do it. For me?"

She looked at him with pleading eyes. His insides melted at her stare and he knew that she was going to be stubborn about this.

"Fine. But if I ever feel like you are being too ridiculous about this I'm going to make you stop."

She happily smiled at him, knowing that she had won. She let go of his head and slowly sat up again. She threw the covers back, revealing her banged and bandaged legs. What wasn't covered in gauze was badly bruised. Neville gasped as he saw her injuries. She swung her legs over so they were dangling off the side of the bed. Neville gingerly reached out and grazed his hand along her right calf. She twitched a little at the touch and the wizard quickly pulled his hand back, afraid that he had caused her pain.

"S-sorry."

"No it's okay. It didn't hurt. It just surprised me a little."

He slowly reached out again and lightly rubbed her calf. Even with the scars and bruises her skin was incredibly soft to the touch. She watched him with wonder as he examined her. She reached down and took his hand in hers, causing his head to snap up to look at her. She leaned forward so their faces were about a foot apart.

"Do you want the present that I was talking about?"

As she spoke, she inched closer and closer to him. The hair on his arms stood up as she whispered to him. He loved her voice. It was so delicate and serene.

"Mhmm."

The witch closed the gap between them and soon her lips where connected to his. At her touch Neville swore time stopped. He was now in his perfect little world that revolved around him and his dream witch. Aubrielle lightly bit his lower lip and begged for entrance with her tongue. Neville was only too happy to comply as he let the witch deepen the kiss. She expertly slipped her tongue into his mouth and they began to explore each other. Neville wanted to remember every second of this as he took in her smells and tastes. She finally pulled away, slowly, when she ran out of air and needed to catch her breath. She still had her lips parted as she looked into his eyes.

"Are you happy that you gave in now?"

Neville was at a loss for words. When Aubrielle stopped the kiss she had taken his breath with him. He just stared back at her, watching her eyes dance and twinkle under the dim lighting in the wing. It took him a couple seconds before he could give the reply that she was praying for.

"Very."

"Good." The witch swung her feet back onto the bed and rolled to her side so she was lying down again. She may have just slept for 24 hours but she was still tired. Hell, she had been an inch away from death. She felt like all of her energy was taken out of her. She looked back at Neville who was still in a trance from the kiss. She giggled softly at his distant expression, bringing him back to reality.

"Doua Sansa, right?"

"Yeah."

"Thank God I helped you with your Potions homework those weeks ago."

They both laughed at the sad truth but soon Neville's face grew serious. He reached down and tucked a strand of Aubrielle's hair behind her ear, letting his hand linger at her cheek. She reached up and put her hand on his before bringing it to her lips and kissing it lightly.

"What's wrong?"

"Just, after I gave you the potion, you didn't react to it as quickly as I thought you would. I thought you were going to die."

"I was that bad, huh?"

"Your eyes rolled into the back of your head, your spine was twisted awkwardly, and you were as still and cold as a statue. Yeah, you were that bad."

The wizard went into a full speech about the event and what had happened to her exactly. She was surprised that she didn't remember most of it. She remembered that Theo Nott was her attacker but that was about it. She shivered as he told her about how dead she felt in his arms and how frantic he was when making the potion. After everything was said she could see that he was choking up and that tears would soon follow.

"And Theo?"

"He has a trial for Wednesday. His charge is using an Unforgivable and if he is found guilty, which he will be, he will do time in Azkaban."

"Do I have to go to the trial?"

"I guess the Ministry hasn't come to talk to you yet. No, you don't have to if you aren't comfortable doing so. They took pictures of all your injuries and will use those as evidence. Harry and myself will also go as witnesses to the event."

"Okay, good." But Neville could tell that she was still terrified of the wizard. She had every right to be. The git had tried to kill her!

"Don't worry Aubrielle, he won't be able to hurt you ever again."

"What if he is found innocent?"

"But he won't be! Please try to think logically here Aubrielle! It happened, clear as day. As if your injuries and his wand's memory aren't proof enough, there are, like, ten witnesses. You don't need to worry about a thing. Please relax, okay?"

The witch rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. She didn't want Neville to see her cry but there was no stopping the tears that were now rolling down her cheeks. He stood up and leaned over her so she had no choice but to look at him. He dabbed her tears away with his thumb and she reached up and pulled his face down into hers. As she kissed him, she continued to cry. This time the tears represented how thankful she was to have this wizard in her life. Because if he wasn't, not only would she be dead, but Nielah would be alone as well. In her opinion, that was worse. She let go of his face and the Gryffindor stood up again. He sat back down on the seat and yawned. It was late now, most likely around half past ten. Looks like he had lost track of time. That was normal when he was around Aubrielle though.

"Neville, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"Can you stay with me tonight?"

He thought about the idea of sleeping in a chair again. Even though he really didn't want to, he would for Aubrielle. Hell, he would sleep on a bed of nails if it meant he got to stay with her.

"Of course."

The witch moved over so she was all the way on the side of the bed. He looked at her quizzically as she pulled the blankets back.

"What are you doing?"

"Well I'm not going to make you sleep in the chair."

Neville smiled as he happily took off his shoes. He gently got in the bed and laid down on his back. Almost instantly, Aubrielle rolled onto her side so her head was resting on his chest. She placed her hand on his torso and gripped tightly. He took his arm and placed it on her back, slowly massaging her wounds. This was perfect. She nuzzled into him and his insides spun at her touch. He could feel her body heat next to him and he cherished it. Aubrielle's head lightly rose whenever he breathed and she soon found herself feeling dreary by listening to his heartbeat.

She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. She whispered the words, "thank you," before falling asleep against him.

Neville kept massaging her back until he was sure she was asleep. He smiled down at the witch in his arms before letting his head flop back on the pillow. He was soon asleep too and dreaming about the same witch that was sharing her bed with him. Unfortunately, dreams were not possible for the Ravenclaw beauty that night.

o.O.o

_She opened her eyes to see that she was in a dimly lit room. As she went to stand up, she felt something holding her back. She looked to see that there were chains holding her arms and legs to the stone wall behind her. As she looked around the room in confusion, she heard a figure laugh in the shadows. He slowly stepped into the light, and she made out the outline of Theo Nott. He had a devilish grin on his face as he watched the witch struggle. She called out for help but it was obvious that no one would be able to hear her from where she was being held prisoner. Theo stepped in front of her and lifted her chin up so she was forced to look at him._

"_Well, well. Look who is finally awake. Hello beautiful."_

"_Let me go Theo!"_

"_And why would I do that? Don't you remember what I told you? I said you would beg for death when I am done with you."_

"_You'll get caught. You'll get sent to Azkaban."_

"_You think I'm afraid of Azkaban? My entire family is made up of deatheaters. I'll end up there anyway. I thought you were a Ravenclaw…"_

"_I am a Ravenclaw and proud of it. At least I'm not a bloody Slytherin!"_

_She practically spat out the last word as Theo let go of her chin. Her head was heavy on her neck and it flopped downwards. The wizard slowly walked away from her and lifted his wand. He said a spell she did not recognize and she fell out of her chains. _

"_Stand up."_

_If she was going to beg for death by the end of this, she wasn't going to make it easy on Theo. She stayed on the floor, defiantly refusing his command._

"_No."_

"_Wrong answer. Crucio!"_

_The witch felt a shot of pain course through her body as the curse left his wand. Her body jerked upward and soon she was standing on her feet against her will. She heard two more people in the shadows and soon was face to face with Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson. Theo turned to his friends, "Get me Nielah." _

"_NO! She didn't do anything!"_

"_Maybe seeing your sister will help you come to your senses."_

_Sure enough, Aubrielle's little sister was soon in the room, being dragged by her shirt collar. Draco threw her to the floor and she landed with a hard thud. The younger witch was barely conscious and it was obvious that she had been tortured as well._

"_NIELAH!"_

"_Don't worry, your sister is alive. But just barely..."_

o.O.o

"LET HER GO! NIELAH, NO!"

Neville woke with a start as Aubrielle pounded her fists against his chest. The witch was thrashing in the bed, which was causing Neville some serious pain.

"Ow, ouch! Aubrielle wake up! Wake up!"

He was shaking her now, trying to wake her up from the nightmare that she was having. The witch woke with a start and started gasping for air. Her hair was plastered to her face with sweat and tears were gushing out of her eyes. Neville sat up and turned the lamp on next to him. The duo was soon joined by Madame Pomfrey as well. The healer took a bottle out of her robe and tilted Aubrielle's head back, forcing the liquid down her throat. The Ravenclaw immediately calmed down and regained her breath. Madame Pomfrey hovered over her and smoothed away the damp hair that was stuck to her forehead. She put the bottle of medicine on the nightstand and sat in the armchair.

"Did you have a nightmare Ms. Song?"

The witch slowly nodded her head as she wrapped her arms tightly around Neville's waist. He brought her into his arms and held her tightly, making her feel safe and secure. She didn't want to talk about it. It was too terrible to repeat to anyone.

"That's expected. You went through something very traumatic."

Again Aubrielle shook her head. She was scared out of her mind and she was afraid that if she opened her mouth at all; all she would do was scream. She didn't trust herself to speak. Silent tears fell down her face as the healer checked her vitals. When she checked out as okay, the healer nodded to the two students and scurried out of the closed room. Neville looked out the window to see that the sun was rising. The room was lit with a soft peach color and the walls had a glow to them. He could hear Madame Pomfrey walking from bed to bed, checking the patients during her morning rounds. Aubrielle was breathing heavily against his chest and he bent his neck so he could kiss her on her forehead.

"You want to tell me about the nightmare?"

"Maybe later, but please don't make me talk about it right now."

"I won't, I won't. You can tell me whenever you are ready to."

"What day is it?"

"Unfortunately, it's Monday."

The Ravenclaw let out a moan. She was already so far behind in her schoolwork from missing the week prior. She really didn't want another day's worth of assignments to make up on top of that. She had no choice though. Madame Pomfrey had already told her yesterday that she had to stay in bed all day today.

"Neville, do you think you could go to my classes and get my assignments for me? I have so much work to make up so I want to get started as soon as possible."

The wizard was standing now and putting his shoes on. As much as he wanted to spend the day with her in bed, he needed to go to classes.

"Of course. What classes do you have today?"

"Only three today: Charms, Potions, and Transfigurations. Thank you so much Neville."

He went over to her bed and cupped her head in his hands. He leaned down and gave her a quick peck on her lips before putting his robe on.

"You're very welcome."

The wizard pushed back the curtains to see that Nielah was standing outside of the room. She had a huge plate of food and a glass of pumpkin juice in her hands. Neville greeted her before exiting the wing.

"Hey Nielah."

"Hi Neville!"

The younger witch rushed into the room and put the plate and cup on the small nightstand next to her sister's bed. She turned to look at her with a big grin on her face.

"He slept here, didn't he?"

Aubrielle laughed at her sister's eagerness, "Yes, he did."

"Yes! It's about time you got a boyfriend."

"Nielah! Neville is not my boyfriend."

"Shut it Aubrielle. You're not fooling me. You hold hands with him all the time, you're always talking about him, and I _know_ for a fact that you guys kiss each other. He's your bloody boyfriend."

The sixth year looked at her kid sister in awe. There she goes again, showing off her uncanny ability to figure things out. Neville technically _wasn't_ her boyfriend though. They just liked each other, and that was it. Although there was no denying that the witch very much liked the idea of being in a steady relationship with the Gryffindor.

Nielah reached over and took a swig of the pumpkin juice before handing the cup to her sister. Aubrielle drank some as well, happy that it wasn't the fowl tasting medicine that she was so use to drinking for the past day. Her sister helped feed her the scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast. She savored the flavor of the food since she hadn't eaten real food since Saturday morning. Her sister ate her portion as well and once the plate was sparkling clean she called for the elf, Rusty, to take it away. Nielah sat and talked with her for a little but soon it was time for her to run along to her first class of the day.

"Have a good day Nielah."

"I'll back at lunch time to bring you more food"

"Can't wait."

Aubrielle watched her sister walk out through the curtain. She laid her head down on her pillow and rubbed her full stomach. Madame Pomfrey soon interrupted her little down time, though, when she came in and announced that she needed to change her bandages. She had a tub of water, a washcloth, and gauze in her arms.

The witch reluctantly threw back the sheets and sat up. She swung her legs around and Madame Pomfrey came and sat in the chair that Nielah had occupied only seconds ago. The healer slowly started unwrapping Aubrielle's legs and the witch began feeling pain rise in her body. She still hadn't seen the extent of her injuries yet but based on how sensitive they were; she guessed they were really bad. The witch let out a small shriek as Madame Pomfrey quickly tugged at the bandage, leaving her legs completely bare. Aubrielle looked down in horror as she saw her thighs and calves. They were terribly bruised, first of all. She had deep blue and dark red splotches all over her. The worse injury on her legs was the on her right calf, the one Neville had grazed with his hand. It was a third degree burn mark and the skin was raw and irritated. Aubrielle's hatred towards Theo grew as she examined all her wounds.

The older witch took the washcloth and soaked it in the warm water. She softly took the towel and rubbed it up and down the sixth year's legs, making her wince in pain. Once her legs had been cleaned from hip to toes, the healer started wrapping fresh gauze around her. After she was done with her legs, she asked Aubrielle to kindly removed her top so she could move on to her chest. It didn't need to be wrapped, just looked at.

Aubrielle lifted up her nightgown and shivered as her body was exposed to the cold air. She looked down to see that her chest cavity was swollen and bruised as well.

Madame Pomfrey lightly ran her wand over the injury, trying to decide the right type of treatment. When her wand emitted a green haze, she snapped her fingers and soon Marbles appeared.

"What can Marbles do for Madame Pomfrey?" The elf was turned away, talking to the curtains, out of respect towards Aubrielle bare chest.

"Get me the deep cooling ointment in the blue bottle please. It will be labeled, 'For Chest Use Only.'"

"Yes ma'am. Right away."

The elf disappeared but was only gone for a mere ten seconds. When she same back, she handed the healer the blue bottle before scurrying away to do more chores. Madame Pomfrey squeezed the goop into her hands and rubbed them together. She turned to Aubrielle with apologetic eyes.

"This is going to sting and tingle dear, but it will help you get better."

Aubrielle nodded and braced herself for the medicine. It was absolutely freezing to the touch and at first she didn't feel a reaction to it. Suddenly, her whole chest felt like it was on fire and she unconsciously yelled out in pain.

"OWW! Please stop! Please stop!"

Madame Pomfrey pulled her hands away and cleaned them on the wet washcloth.

"I'm sorry dear but it had to be done. That is all I will use for today but I'm going to have to do it again tomorrow."

Aubrielle grumbled as she put her nightgown back on. She tucked herself back into her bed as the older witch collected her things and left. The Ravenclaw wanted to sleep so badly but she was afraid that if she closed her eyes, she would have that nightmare again. She decided to risk it, though, as her head hit the pillow and her body was consumed by slumber.

o.O.o

It was mid afternoon, around four-ish, when Neville returned to the wing with Aubrielle's homework. He walked through the curtains to find her sitting up in her bed, reading sheet music. She was humming some sort of tune but he couldn't recognize it. She perked up when he came in and she put her music down on her lap. She frowned at the stacks up books in his hands.

"Really?"

"Really. The teachers were being extra generous today with their homework assignments."

"Great."

The Gryffindor set the stack of books down on the table and slouched in the armchair. He looked around at the tiny, closed off space. It was dark from the curtains and he decided that the witch needed some light. He stood up and pushed all the curtains to the side, tying them to the poles with cloth. The space immediately brightened as the light poured in. He sat down, satisfied.

"That's better. Now you're not living in a cave."

Aubrielle laughed at the boy but was thankful that he had done it. She really was starting to feel like a gremlin.

"How was your day?"

"Boring. I hate Mondays. Mostly because I don't have Herbology."

"You're such a plant nerd."

"So? You're a choir freak!"

They both cracked up as they threw pity insults at each other, knowing that they weren't genuine. This was the kind of banter that Neville had always longed for with a girl. She was someone who had a sense of humor and could dish it right back. When the conversation died and quietness fell over them, Neville studied the witch in the bed. She had the color back in her cheeks, which he was very thankful for. Her hair was also combed and her eyes shined again. Suddenly, he remembered what he had wanted to tell her all along.

"They rescheduled the Quidditch game. You know, the Hufflepuff Ravenclaw one? It's set for Saturday."

Aubrielle perked up as she heard the word Quidditch. She wanted to fly so badly. She looked down at her wounds and questioned if she would be able to.

"I don't know if I'll be able to play. I haven't even gotten out of bed yet except for when I had to use the bathroom."

Neville saw the sadness in her eyes, "How about we go for a stroll through the castle than? Get your legs use to walking again."

"That would be lovely. I'll ask Madame Pomfrey if it's okay."

Aubrielle called for the witch and she was soon standing at her side, "Yes, Ms. Song?"

"Can I please go for a walk through the castle with Neville…please?"

The healer stood there and contemplated it for a moment. After seeing no harm in the promenade, she granted the sixth year's wish, must to her delight. Neville then helped her out of the bed and into her slippers. He took off his sweater, leaving him in a loose, long sleeve shirt, and gave it to Aubrielle to wear. She put it on and laughed at how big it was on her. Neville stuck out his arm and the witch gripped onto it tightly. They slowly made their way out of the medical wing and down the stairs. Their pace was slow, but at least Aubrielle was walking again. They strolled into the Great Hall and saw that most of their friends were seated at the Gryffindor table, having an early dinner. They all seemed to perk up when they saw the duo coming closer. Luna stood up and walked over to her friend, giving her a gentle hug.

"It's good to see you up and about Aubrielle."

"It feels good Luna."

Neville helped her slowly lower to the bench and once she was situated, he sat down next to her. Harry and Hermione took in her appearance.

"How are you feeling?"

"A lot better now that I'm out of that bloody hospital bed."

Hermione smiled at her. A little over 48 hours ago she was on her deathbed. Now she was, almost, back to her usual self and cursing like normal. On top of it all, she still looked ravishing. Hermione admired her stamina.

"Did you hear about the Quidditch game? Will you be able to play?"

Aubrielle turned to look at Harry. She found it funny that all he cared about was Quidditch. That was Harry Potter for you though. Admittedly, she wouldn't want it any other way.

"Sweet Merlin I hope so. I want to fly so badly but as of right now, my injuries are too constricting. Madame Pomfrey told me I am healing rapidly, however, so maybe luck will be on my side."

Harry nodded his head, completely understanding her want to be on a broom. He had it all the time.

Aubrielle put some food on her plate and started eating her dinner. The gang made small talk and laughed as if nothing were wrong in the world. Aubrielle looked around at everyone and beamed on the inside. She was ecstatic to be friends with them and she was happy that she now had something going for her with Neville. And now that those nasty Slytherins were out of Hogwarts, she was going to able to relax. Sixth year was turning out to be one for the record books.

**Holy shit, that was easily my LONGEST chapter…ever. Love it! I just started writing this one and I didn't want to stop! REVIEW PLEASE! :)**


	17. Don't Give up on Me

**Welcome to chapter 17! WOOO! So I'm looking at my timeline and I'm thinking that this story will end up being around 25ish chapters. Also, I don't know if this will disappoint some of you, but there will be no real smut in this story. HOWEVER, after I have completed this story in its entirety, I will do a ****sweet**** one-chapter story about them…uh…doing the dirty. So you can look forward to that as well if you like that kind of writing. Okay, I'm done rambling. Enjoy and review! :)**

(Tuesday)

"HALLELUJAH!"

Madame Pomfrey had just given the Aubrielle the good news that she could attend her afternoon classes and start sleeping back in the Ravenclaw tower. She still, of course, had to come back to the wing to receive daily treatments on her wounds. Aubrielle was literally jumping for joy as the witch walked around the wing. Nielah looked up at her older sister; she was smiling because she was so happy for her. Aubrielle looked down at her.

"Nielah, love, can you run and get me my uniform and my robe please?" 

"Of course!"

Her little sister darted out of the wing and ran back to the Ravenclaw tower. Neville strutted into the wing, then, and was curious as to why the sixth year was jumping and dancing in circles. She had asked him to come during lunch and he was right on time.

"Are you happy about something? I can't tell."

The witch turned to face him and smacked him playful in the chest. She hit him harder than she intended, though, and he started rubbing himself to relieve the pain.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"For being sarcastic."

He smiled at her as she giggled. She was really giddy about something and he knew he wouldn't even need to ask her why before she told him.

"Madame Pomfrey said I could go to all my afternoon classes! I get to get out of this damn bed and this damn room."

"Aubrielle that's awesome!"

She beamed at him. She had never been this excited about attending classes before. What made her even more thrilled was the fact that she would be able to go to Herbology with Neville.

Nielah came hurrying back into the wing with Aubrielle's Hogwarts uniform in her arms.

"Here Aubs!"

The young witch threw the clothes onto her sister's bed and Aubrielle immediately started untying her nightgown, temporarily forgetting about Neville. She reached down to grab the hem of the garment, and in one swift movement pulled it over her head. Neville's jaw dropped as Aubrielle stood there in her knickers and bra. Funny thing was, he wasn't staring at her body's figure. His eyes were bulging at the sight of her terribly colored chest wound. He blinked his eyes, as if that would suddenly make it disappear. He took a step closer to her and she felt him standing next to her. She saw him staring at her chest with a worried look on his face. She diverted her eyes, feeling slightly uncomfortable about being so exposed in front of the wizard that she was crushing on. She quickly pulled on her skirt, which seemed to snap him out of his haze.

"It doesn't really hurt anymore. Just when I cough or take a deep breath."

"It looks so painful."

"It's not."

She quickly slipped on her shirt and buttoned it up before putting her tie on. She put on her knee high socks and was happy to see that they covered almost all of her bandages. She put on her robe and felt a warm sensation in her stomach. It felt so incredibly good to be back in uniform. Once she was dressed and ready to head towards the Greenhouses, she turned to face Neville again.

"Ready?"

Neville held out his hand and laced his fingers with hers. He was happy to see her look so…normal, again. She smiled as he rubbed his thumb on the back of her hand.

"Ready."

o.O.o

Having missed so much schoolwork, Aubrielle let Neville talk her into standing at the front of the class with him. She knew that it would definitely benefit her, though, because there was no room to daydream in front of the professor. Professor Sprout strutted into the greenhouse and was surprised to see the Ravenclaw at the front of the room.

"Ms. Song! It's good to have you back dear."

"Good to be back."

Sometime during Sunday, Headmaster Dumbledore had talked to all of Aubrielle's professors, telling them of her situation. He asked them to kindly give her extensions on the missed assignments, much to her relief. She loved that most of her professors seemed so caring and understanding. The only one who didn't find it fair was Professor Snape. Go figure.

"Alright, c'mon Ms. Patil. Quit meandering and fit your spot. Today we will be learning about the powers of fluxweed. Does anyone know about fluxweed already?"

The older witch held up the dried grass in the air. Neville turned to look at Aubrielle and the two shared a silent moment of laughter. Oh, they knew _all_ about fluxweed. Aubrielle slowly raised her hand, much to everyone's disbelief. She never participated in classes.

"Oh! Yes Ms. Song?"

"Fluxweed holds miraculous healing powers. Combined with other ingredients, it creates the potion Doua Sansa, which can bring someone back to life when they are only a second away from death."

"You are absolutely right Ms. Song! Five points to Ravenclaw. And can anyone tell me what those other ingredients are?"

This time it was Neville's turn to be the know it all, "Moondew, dragon blood, phoenix feather, and dittany."

"Right you are Neville! Five points to Gryffindor."

As Professor Sprout rambled on about the origin of the word fluxweed and where it is most commonly found, Aubrielle was completely engrossed in the lecture. She was curious to learn about the plant that had helped save her life. It was far more complicated than simply having healing properties. The witch was starting to understand why Neville was such a Herbology geek. At the very core of it all, it was extremely intriguing. Before she knew it, class was over and Professor was giving out the homework parchments. Aubrielle took hers and rolled it up to put it in her bag. Neville came over to walk her back to the castle after he had helped the professor put away the fluxweed. For the first time, Aubrielle really looked at the greenhouse. It was magical, in a sense. Being surrounded by plants made her forget that the castle was only a short walk away. Neville was back at her side, then, and the duo locked hands before heading back towards the school.

o.O.o.O.o

They were crunched into the small library cove again, discussing Theo's trial that was set for tomorrow. Neville and Aubrielle were holding hands at the windowsill while Ginny was sitting on Harry's lap. Aubrielle could feel the darkness of night time make her sleepy, but she needed to stay up and talk to the two wizards who were actually going to testify against the boy that pretty much tried to kill her. Ginny was simply tagging along to be with her boyfriend. At this point in the conversation, the Ravenclaw made it blatantly clear that she was absolutely _not_ attending the hearing. Everyone understood why she wouldn't want to, so they didn't question her choice or motives. Besides, she had already sent the ministry her story and there was no real need for her to present it in person. Seeing the git face-to-face again would probably cause her to lash out at him, which wouldn't benefit anything. She just wanted to stay at Hogwarts and be with her sister. Only problem with her not going was the fact that Neville _was._ So she really wouldn't see him all day tomorrow. The witch gently gave his hand a squeeze as he talked to Harry about the overwhelming evidence against the Slytherin.

"They even found the trace of the curse when they checked his wand! The git can try and get the best wizarding lawyer possible, but it would be a waste of money. It would be impossible for him to be declared innocent."

Harry was nervously tapping his fingers on Ginny's thigh as he weighed the options and possibilities in his head. He knew better than to just assume everything was going to work out. Theo's family was heavily connected to the Dark Lord and Harry knew for a fact that Voldemort wouldn't want a promising junior deatheater in Azkaban. He would want him free so that he could serve him. Harry knew that the ministry was corrupt and he knew that Voldemort would use all the resources he could to get Theo off the hook. Gods he hated politics.

"Hopefully the ministry still has enough common sense to put him away. All I'm saying is this: the Nott family is very important to Voldemort. That evil bastard will do whatever he can to make sure that Theo stays out of Azkaban. What good would he be in there to him? He wouldn't be able to serve him. That's one less person on his side. This trial is going to be a lot bigger than the use of an Unforgivable."

Aubrielle felt her stomach clench as she heard both sides of the story. Both wizards had standard points but the witch couldn't help but feel the presence of the negative energy. While they all prayed that justice would prevail, they couldn't help but worry about the trickery that the Dark Lord was capable of. The Ravenclaw rested her head on Neville's shoulder as a single tear streaked her soft cheek. More than anything, she was terrified for the trial because she knew, that if by some twisted fate Theo were found innocent, he would surely come back to kill her as revenge.

Neville breathed in Aubrielle's scent as her hair fell down his chest. He could feel her gently shaking against him and he wanted to comfort her so badly, but he knew it was no use. He knew that she would continue to worry and think about the trial even though it was out of her hands. She was a Ravenclaw, after all.

Harry looked up at the couple by the window and smiled to himself. The bond that these two had formed already was incredibly strong and it showed no signs of ever breaking. Harry looked up at the fiery red head sitting on his lap. Her skin glowed in the lamplight and he wanted to just observe her and count her freckles. His bond with Ginny hadn't necessarily been formed as quickly as Aubrielle and Neville's, but it was unbreakable. They loved each other and they would fight for each other until the end of the world. He unconsciously rubbed her leg, making her entire being tingle. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and gave him a quick kiss on his temple. She knew that talk of Voldemort and war tired him and worried him. As it should, he _was_ the Chosen One. But Ginny never failed to let him know that she was there for him and always would be.

Neville looked out the window and into the darkness. He hated the darkness because to him it symbolized the unknown. And he hated the unknown even more.

"So tomorrow at eight in the morning?"

Harry lifted his head to look at Neville, "Yes. We'll floo over to the ministry from Dumbledore's office."

"Sounds good. I don't know about you guys, but I'm exhausted."

Ginny reluctantly got off her boyfriend's lap as he gently nudged her in agreement with the wizard. Aubrielle straightened out and the four started walking towards the exit of the library. The Ravenclaw walked on her tiptoes for a couple of steps so she could whisper into his ear.

"Walk me back to my dorm?"

"Well duh."

She playfully slapped his arm as he shot her a smirk. That was one of her favorite things about Neville. He could make her laugh even in the most stressful situations. She gripped his hand tighter as the two couples separated. Harry and Ginny walked up the stairs to the Gryffindor tower while Neville and Aubrielle walked down the hall to the Ravenclaw portrait. They reached the landing and Aubrielle turned to look at him. He had mixed emotions in his eyes and she couldn't quite name them all. She could obviously see concern, though, which troubled her deeply.

"You think Theo will get away with it?" 

"It's hard to say. I'm praying he doesn't, of course, and he definitely deserves to rot in a jail cell, but…"

"But what?"

The wizard took a deep breath and made an audible sigh. Harry was right. The Nott family is way too valuable to the Dark Lord. He felt a terrible pain in the pit of his stomach as he thought about it more and more. And the more he thought about, the more of a reality it became. He would just have to go to the trial tomorrow and be as persuasive as humanly possible.

"Harry has a point. The Nott family is practically kin to Who-Know-Who. He can't afford to lose Theo."

Aubrielle's eyes widened in terror. If Neville gave up on her, then the whole would too. She couldn't be alone, not when she had just been getting use to being with him and his friends.

"Neville, please. Please, please don't give up…"

The wizard quickly wrapped his arms around the witch as she choked on her words. She could feel the emotions running through her body and out of her eyes as tears fell down her face and off her chin. She wrapped her arms around his waist and took a deep breath, smelling his cologne on his sweater. He let his head fall into her hair and he kissed the top of her head several times. She gently lifted her head up to look at him and his lips immediately captured hers. Her hands shot up to his face as she cupped his chin. One of his hands rested on the small of her back while the other one was at the back of her head, pushing her face into his. He gently bit at her bottom lip and she opened her mouth to give him more. He slipped his tongue in and she could taste his sweetness and passion. She let out a low moan as they continued to dance their tongues in each other's mouths. Aubrielle could feel the passion inside of her flare up, as her cheeks became a deep scarlet color.

He was the first one to pull away and Aubrielle gasped at the loss of heat. She wanted it back so desperately. She buried her face deep into his chest and continued to cry. He gently took her by the shoulders and held her out in front of him.

"Look at me," she obeyed his command, "I will _never_ give up on you. Never. Don't you dare even think that."

She was shocked as she took in his tone of complete seriousness. His gaze was strong and defiant and it was obvious that he would stay true to those words. Her mouth was slightly parted and she was pretty sure that she looked dumfounded.

"Okay?"

She nodded her head in silent agreement and Neville pulled her in again for another passion rearing kiss. He pulled her away and whispered the password to the portrait, she had told it to him in complete secrecy, and the painting leisurely swung open. He let the back of his hand run down her cheek.

"Sleep well Aubrielle."

"I-I can't anymore. It's all nightmares."

"Because your mind lets them be. Stop thinking, stop being a Ravenclaw for once, and let your imagination take charge. When you sleep, you have the ability to escape reality and live in a fantasy. Remember that."

He quickly kissed her forehead and nudged her towards the portrait hole before walking down the stairs and disappearing around the corner.

**Sorry for the short write. But last chapter was super long and I wanted the trial to be one gigantic chapter so…yeah. Review please! :)**


	18. Courtroom 3

**Hello my lovely readers. Here is the trial scene. Hope you like it. RxR!**

(Wednesday)

Neville met Harry outside of Dumbledore's office promptly at 7:30 in the morning. He was dressed in his most business like dress robes and his shoes were spotless. Both wizards knew that their fight would be a tough one so they made sure all their details were precise and on point. Harry gave the door three sharp knocks and it soon swung backwards, revealing the Headmaster.

"Ah. Come in Neville. Come in Harry. Right on time."

The two Gryffindors stepped into the room and the door closed behind them. Neville could start to feel his nerves fluttering inside of him as the wizards moved towards the fireplace. The Headmaster took a handful of floo powder and shot it into the fire. The flames turned to a bright emerald color. He turned back to look at the sixth years.

"You're going to have a rough trial ahead of you boys. But I have no doubt in my mind that you can do it."

Harry gave his mentor a stern nod before saying, "Ministry of Magic" and stepping into the flames. In a matter of seconds, he was engulfed in the green heat and whisked away. Neville said the same thing and walked straight into the fireplace. He felt a weird tingling sensation and before the wizard knew it, he was wobbling out into the Ministry of Magic. Harry was standing in front of him, patiently waiting.

"Ready?"

Neville gulped unconsciously before following Harry towards the elevators. Harry was well aware of how the trial process worked, having been here last year for using the Patronus Charm in the presence of his dumbass of a cousin, Dudley. The Chosen One walked stiffly towards the elevators and received many nods and glances as he walked. This time last year, everyone was against him, saying that he was plotting to overtake the Ministry with Dumbledore. Now that people knew You-Know-Who was back, they treated him with more respect, mostly out of shame.

The grate opened up before them and the two wizards stepped in. They grabbed the golden knobs above their heads before Harry pressed the down button. Suddenly, the elevator shot downwards at a terribly fast speed and Neville's stomach flipped. Before he knew it the unit was thrusting backwards and his head whiplashed, causing his neck to feel immense pain. Meanwhile, Harry was just standing still like nothing was wrong. They finally stopped and the gates flung open. A calm voice greeted them, "Ministry of Magic Courtrooms." Harry strutted out into the hallway while Neville wobbled behind him, trying to find his balance.

The two wizards walked down a hall until they reached the door. There was a wooden plaque nailed to it that said 'COURTROOM 3' in bold lettering. Harry paused and looked back at Neville.

"Alright Neville. Are you ready?"

Neville was screaming on the inside. He was about to see Theo Nott again, the same wizard that had tried to kill his dream witch. He would need all his will power to not pounce on him and strangle that git. He took a deep breath and coolly nodded at his friend. Harry rapped harshly on the door, and soon an official greeted them.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Longbottom, please come in and seat yourself to the left."

Harry bow slightly to the wizard and Neville did the same after observing the exchange. The two Gryffindors walked into the courtroom and Neville couldn't help but drop his jaw a tad. There were exactly 100 high officials dressed in their courtroom attire and the wizard could not help but feel intimidated by it all. Over in the left side of the room was a solid oak table with two chairs. A couple feet above the table, there floated golden lettering that read, "Accusing Theo Nott of using an Unforgivable." The sentence was long, to say the least, but across the room, at the table that was exactly similar to theirs, the letters said, "Defending himself, Theo Nott, for using an Unforgivable." Neville's body started to tense up when the bastard in question paraded into the courtroom with his deatheater father. Both Nott men walked in like they owned the bloody Ministry and it rubbed the wizard the wrong way. They both had on pressed, gray, and pinstriped suits and their shoes were freshly shined. No doubt they made an elf do it too.

They sat down at their table and Theo looked over and connected eyes with Neville. The blood in the latter's body started to boil as the Slytherin smirked at him. He clenched his fists, which got Harry's attention.

"Sit down mate. We'll have our turn in a minute or so."

Neville whipped his head around to see that Harry was already seated and he had a look of unspeakable calm on his face. Harry pulled the chair out to further his request. The fired up sixth year reluctantly took his seat next to his friend. Only about a minute passed before the head judge came into the room and took his seat at the head of the courtroom. Since the case was involving such a serious crime, none other than Kingsley Shacklebolt was the high judge. Harry let a small smile show as he looked at his friend and fellow Order member. There was no way in Hell that the Dark Lord could ever persuade Kingsley. Not matter how hard Voldemort tried.

The head wizard cleared his throat before bringing the court to order. In his strong, booming voice, Kingsley laid down the trial.

"Jury, we are here today to put Theo Nott on trial for the use of the Unforgivable, Cruciatus Curse. Opening statements from the accusers."

Harry promptly stood and straightened out his suit coat. He walked around from behind the table and paced in front of his peers. He talked calmly and with poise.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this past Saturday, November 18th, Theo Nott did use the Unforgivable. I serve as a witness as well as Mr. Longbottom. He used the curse on Aubrielle Song, a Ravenclaw sixth year, in the Quidditch locker rooms on campus. He did so intentionally with full awareness of his actions."

Theo's father stood up abruptly, cutting Harry off.

"My son claims that the curse was used in self defense. Ms. Song was about to hex him and he simply reacted accordingly. When the Ministry found her wand, they found that the last spell she used was the disarming charm, Expelliarmus. With Theo's wand gone, the young lady would have been able to hurt his as she wished."

"Excuse me Mr. Nott," Harry's voice was becoming harsh sounding, "but based on the times of the curses, Theo casted the Unforgivable first. Only after he had her withering in pain did the witch try to fight back. He triggered the fight and he did it knowingly. Besides, I know personally that Ms. Song had no intention of hurting your son."

Harry hid a small smirk as Theo's dad sneered at him. The Gryffindor turned and faced the Jury once more.

"Aubrielle's wounds were life threatening and had Mr. Longbottom not acted accordingly, she would be presumed dead."

"You have no proof of that!"

Theo was standing now and angrily pointing at the Chosen One. Neville stood up then and glared at the Slytherin with pure hatred in his eyes. Harry let his friend take the floor by backing up towards the table. The Jury and Kingsley watched and listened silently.

"No proof? I SAW HER LYING THERE! She was as white as marble and just as cold! Her eyes were in the back of her head and her breath was dangerously slow. Had I not acted and made the Doua Sansa immediately, you would also be on trial for murder!"

Theo was slightly taken back by Neville's stamina and strength. He was always known for being the pushover, the one who really didn't belong in Gryffindor. Where did this hate come from?

"People of the Jury," he continued, "I have personally seen the scars, bruises, and burns. They are terrible beyond belief and they are malicious. It seems to me that this young man needs to be punished accordingly."

Theo stared at him in amazement. Longbottom had guts, he had to give that to him, but since when? How? And the even bigger question, why? Besides, how had he seen her injuries? She covered them all up with her robes and clothes and students weren't allowed to see her unless she granted them permission. Suddenly something in the Slytherin's mind clicked and a wicked grin came across his face. He walked over towards Kingsley confidently, much to everyone's surprise.

"Your Honor, I would like to ask Mr. Longbottom to be removed from the courtroom. It appears that he is in an intimate relationship with the victim which sets an even bigger bias as oppose to just being classmates."

Both of the Gryffindors' eyes widened as they took in the words. Neville took a couple small steps backwards until he was by Harry's side again. Kingsley looked at them sideways, his brows raised, "Is this true Mr. Longbottom?"

"I, what? No! No, we're friends, nothing exclusive. I swear!"

"Students are not allowed to see Ms. Song's injuries unless she grants them permission."

Mr. Nott was now standing up and taking charge. He knew that his son was on to something and he was going to capitalize on it.

"From what I understand, Ms. Song's injuries are in intimate spots. Her leg injuries go all the way up to her groin and her chest injury is, well, on her chest. Those are pretty private areas to let a simple 'friend' see. Unless, of course, the girl is letting all the boys in the school see those injuries."

Neville looked at the elder man in horror and rage. How dare he make an accusation that he knew nothing about! How care he suggest that she is some sort of slut, showing off her injuries in a seductive manner! What an arse!

Neville walked forward again, now driven by hate, "How dare you! How dare you accuse her of something so severe! Yes, her injuries are on her legs and chest, but all I have seen are her calves, which are hardly private!"

The wizard tried to keep a straight face because he knew he was lying. He had seen her chest wound but he refused to reveal it. If he did, he would surely get kicked out and Harry needed him.

The courtroom was silent for a moment as the words echoed around the walls and off the high ceiling. Neville went and stood next to Harry, who had his arms crossed over his chest defiantly. He leaned in to whisper to his friend.

"Be careful about your words Neville."

"I'm trying Harry but I will not stand here and let that deatheater accuse Aubrielle of being some sort of slut."

He glared over towards the Nott men and shot the father a death stare. He wanted to walk over to him and hex him into space. He griped the edge of the table to steady himself as his anger reached a new peak. Kingsley straightened some papers at his stand before speaking to the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I will now state the facts that have been given to us. Theo Nott did knowingly place the Cruciatus Curse on Ms. Aubrielle Song _before_ she had the chance to fight back and before she tried to disarm him. There are several witnesses to the attack and all the stories are similar and have been approved by the court. You have also all seen the photos of the injuries prior to the trail and you saw the severity in them. I think that it is time to decide whether the young man is guilty or not."

"Objection! My son has not had a chance to properly defend himself! He has not had the same opportunity as Potter and Longbottom!"

"Your son had his chance but he decided to accuse Mr. Longbottom of having an intimate relationship with the victim instead."

There was a small pause and Neville could hear his heart beating in his ears. He took a sharp intake of air and held it as Kingsley continued.

"All in favor of letting Mr. Theo Nott go without any charges, raise your hands."

As expected, dozens of Jury members raised their hands. They were the weak ones, the ones easily influenced by Voldemort. Kingsley looked around the room before letting them put their hands down.

"Now, all in favor of finding Mr. Theo Nott guilty, raise your hands."

Neville finally let his breath out as he saw the majority of the people raise their hands. He felt Harry's reassuring hand on his shoulder. They had done it. Theo Nott was going to Azkaban.

Kingsley looked around the room again before revealing the verdict.

"On behalf of the Jury and myself, Mr. Theo Nott is found guilty of using the Cruciatous Curse in a maliciously way. He will face ten years in Azkaban prison with no chance of bail. Court dismissed."

Neville turned to Harry and instinctively hugged his friend. They were both smiling as a group of Aurors immediately grabbed hold of Theo and put chains on him. His father was yelling at Kingsley but it was obvious that the Judge was not going to make any adjustments to his verdict. Theo was whimpering now, not seeming so 'badass' anymore, and tears were brimming his eyes. The Aurors quickly walked him out of the courtroom and Mr. Nott followed close behind his son. The Jury members started to leave as well, moving along to their next case or assignment. Kingsley stepped down from his seat and walked over to the two sixth years. He shook hands with both of them before congratulating them on a job well done.

"Good job boys. But to be quite frank, he never stood a chance."

"I wasn't so sure about that until you walked in as Judge." Harry winked at his old friend and laughed a light chuckle. "We took into account the fact that You-Know-Who has deep connections in the Ministry itself and that Theo is a deatheater in the making."

"Yes both of those things are true, but when I saw the case come through, and saw Theo's name, I demanded that I take it."

The trio smiled and gave each other pats on the back before Kingsley went to leave the room.

"I wish I could stay and talk to you young gentlemen but I have to get back to business."

"We understand Kingsley."

The wizard disappeared from the room as Harry and Neville gathered their jackets. They walked out into the hallway and back to the elevators. Neville tried to steady himself this time but it was no use. He still felt like vomiting after the roller-coaster of a ride was over. The walked over to the departure fireplaces and Harry took the floo powder in his hand. He chucked it into the flames, which soon emitted a green sheen. He stood straight up and bellowed, "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Headmaster Dumbledore's office."

They had to wait for consent from Dumbledore himself to floo directly into his office so the boys stood there for a couple of minutes. They watch as the flames turned to a deep lavender shade before returning back to the iconic emerald. That was their permission to return back to the castle and they quickly stepped into the tingling blazes.

The boys stumbled out back into Dumbledore's office. The Headmaster was sitting at his desk, reading the newest edition of the Daily Profit. He looked over the top of his spectacles and peered at the smiling students.

"Can I assume everything went well?"

Neville took a step forward, beaming, "Ten years in Azkaban with no bail."

The Headmaster stood out of his seat and walked towards them. He still had the Profit in his hand. He handed it to Neville who looked down at the headline.

**STUDENT WHO USES UNFORGIVABLE AT HOGWARTS SENT TO AZKABAN**

"Bloody Hell."

"This is the wizarding world Mr. Longbottom. I receive the latest news at all minutes of the day. Ms. Song doesn't, however…"

The Gryffindor smiled at him, getting the hint. He turned back to look at Harry, who nodded at him. He scurried out of the office and down the stairs while Harry stayed back to discuss the trial with the Headmaster.

o.O.o

He busted into the Great Hall and quickly made his way over to the Gryffindor table where he saw his friends eating lunch. Hermione saw him first and quickly nudged Aubrielle. The Ravenclaw looked over and saw him smiling. She stood up and rushed over to him, her heart pounding.

"Please tell me that smile means good news."

"Of course it does! Theo was found guilty!"

The witch flung her arms around him out of instinct and cried softly into his shoulder. This was over, it was finally over. He picked her up so her feet hung above the floor and he carried her back towards their friends. She clung to his neck even after he plopped her down on the bench. He let out a small laugh and she finally let go. The rest of the students were still waiting for the news, but by judging on Aubrielle's strong reaction, they had a feeling it was good. The wizard turned to look at their anxious faces.

"Theo was found guilty."

Ginny let out a small laugh, "Well we figured that much. What's his sentence? Tell us what the git got!"

"Ten years in Azkaban with no chance for bail!"

The group high fived and applauded as the news sunk in. Without even thinking, without caring that everyone was around them, Aubrielle grabbed Neville's face and kissed him hard on the lips. The group's cheering got louder, causing everyone in the Great Hall to look in their direction. Aubrielle pulled away, her face blushing a dark red, while Neville just stared at her in a gaze. She gave a weak smile before turning back to her plate of food. Ginny was laughing hysterically in the corner with Ron and Hermione's jaw was dropped in shock. Dean and Seamus patted Neville on the back while he just sat there, frozen. Harry entered the Great Hall, then, and Ginny got up to embrace her boyfriend. The gang settled down as the Chosen One joined them. They talked about the trial and about Theo's water works, which made everyone happy. They ended up staying in the Great Hall for hours, talking about how the school year was going to get a lot better now that Malfoy and his goonies weren't allowed in the castle. Neville looked over at Aubrielle and saw that she was grinning at everyone, her cheerfulness never leaving her face. He couldn't help but feel the butterflies flutter in his stomach once again.

**Hey guys! Hope you liked it. There are around 4ish chapters left, not including the one-shot that I plan on writing that goes along with this story. From now on it's going be REALLY based on Neville's and Aubrielle's relationship and I think the ended is going to be fantastic. :) Also, I saw another writer do this and I am just as desperate for reviews, so here we go…if you review this chapter, I'll send you a snippet of the next chapter! I don't care if that sounds like I'm being desperate, because I am. Review! Thanks! :)**


	19. Soaring

**Welp that didn't work. I guess you guys just don't want to review. As long as you're still reading I'm happy. Review if ya feel like it. Hope you enjoy the new chapter.**

(Thursday)

(Friday)

"Neville, Neville!"

Aubrielle came running into the library, much to everyone's distaste. She got the expected stares and shushes, but she didn't care. She had great news and she wanted to share it. The Gryffindor was finishing his very last Potions assignment of the term, thank God, and was happy to have an interruption. The witch was smiling and her eyes were sparkling with joy.

"What?"

"Madame Pomfrey just gave me the OK to fly! I can play tomorrow!"

She was anxiously tugging at his sweater sleeve while simultaneously packing away his school supplies. He instantly became frazzled as she continued to ramble.

"C'mon, c'mon! I'm going out to the pitch right now. Come watch me fly! C'mon! Luna and Nielah will be there. Will you hurry up!"

"I, Aubrielle! Hold…on…my books! I'm going, I'm going-"

He was on his feet now and the Ravenclaw was pulling him forward with all her strength. As soon as he took one step forward she darted ahead of him and out of the library. She knew he would follow her and it was obvious that she wanted to get on her broom as soon as possible. The wizard smiled to her sprinting back. It was nice to see her so excited about something as trivial as flying. For someone as good at it as Aubrielle, though, he knew that it was so much more. When Harry broke his arm second year, or more like when Professor Lockhart hexed his bone away, he had gone into a deep withdrawal from it. He wouldn't eat for days and he stank from lack of hygiene. While Aubrielle's situation wasn't nearly as severe, he still knew that she had missed it terribly. After all, she was use to flying everyday.

He made sure all his things were gathered before walking out of the library and out the castle doors. As he stepped into the early winter air, his body shivered under his pea coat. Why did they continue to play Quidditch until the end of the November? How could the players handle this cold? He wrapped his arms around himself tightly and walked over to the stands where he immediately saw the long blonde curls of Luna and the dark waves of Nielah. He walked up the old wooden steps and sat down next to them. The entire Ravenclaw team was now mounting their brooms, Aubrielle had called an emergency practice, and the Seeker was beaming like she had just won the Quidditch World Cup. They released the Quaffle, Bludgers, and Snitch, and soon a scrimmage was under way. The Chasers took shots on the Keeper while the Beaters were practicing their swings. All the while, Aubrielle was intently watching the field, searching for her prize. She spotted the golden ball and dove after it. Nielah smiled as she saw her sister whiz through the air.

"Look at my sister go!"

Neville laughed at the witch's enthusiasm and tucked his hands into his pockets to try and warm them. Luna turned to look at the fourth year, "She is brilliant, isn't she Nielah?"

"Oh she is! She'll kick Hufflepuff's arse tomorrow!"

The trio sat there, watching Aubrielle chase after the Snitch. It was quiet for a couple of minutes but Neville could feel Nielah watching him. He caught her looking at him but she quickly diverted her eyes. He ignored it the first time, but when she did it again he couldn't help but wonder why.

"Do you want to say something Nielah?"

"No." She was snippy and got to the point way too quickly.

"C'mon, we both know that's not true. You can tell me."

The younger witch swallowed and played with her feet. She looked down at her lap and took a breath.

"Are you and Aubrielle…dating?"

The wizard let the question sink in, slightly surprised by the witch's ability to pick things up.

"No. Not technically. We've never been on a date before."

"Right…sorry 'bout that."

Nielah refused to look at the wizard. After all, if she hadn't been so careless, she would have never been taken by Draco. If she hadn't been kidnapped, Aubrielle would have gone to Hogsmeade with Neville. She still felt terrible about the whole situation.

"Nielah don't think it's your fault at all! It's okay, really. We're…good now."

Luna snorted, "Oh, we all know you two are _good_."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Neville lets state the facts here. You guys hold hands, she clings to you unrelentingly, and you've had feelings for her since, what? First year? You two already act like a couple so you might as well go for it already!"

"It's not that easy Luna!"

"Yes it is! Hey, Aubrielle, do you want to go out on a date with me sometime this weekend?"

The blonde lowered her voice down an octave to sound manlier. Nielah got the hint and started playing along when Luna gestured to her. She batted her eyelashes affectionately and twirled a piece of hair with her finger.

"Why of course Neville. I've liked you for some time now. I've been waiting for this."

The two witches looked back at Neville who was trying to compose his laughter. He was failing though, and soon all three of them were snickering at the imitation.

The Ravenclaw team cheered as Aubrielle caught the Snitch. She released it again and soon she was pursuing the winged reward once again. Neville watched in fascination as she performed the task over and over again. He came to the conclusion that she really had the talent to go professional, if she wanted to.

Nielah shook as a cold breeze hit the trio. She leaned into Neville and snuggled into his shoulder. He looked down at her to find her staring at him with curious eyes.

"You know, I would really like it if you and my sister dated."

"Yeah? Why is that?"

"I've never seen her so happy. Plus, when my dad left us, she lost faith in all men. She tries to hide it from me but I'm not stupid, I can see it written on her face. You're changing that Neville."

She wrapped her arms around his waist and he snaked his hand out so he could put it protectively around her shoulder. Through getting closer to Aubrielle, he was becoming tighter with Nielah too, and he had no problem being her adopted older brother. She sighed deeply and Neville took a vow right then and there to ask Aubrielle on a date sometime in the next two days. The younger witch still shivered under the wizard's arm as they continued the conversation.

"You kiss, you two."

"We do. How do you know though? We've never done it in front of you."

"Actually you have."

"When?"

"Lets see, how about Wednesday in the Great Hall when Aubs attacked your face?"

He let out a low chuckle as he remembered the scene. He blushed as he recalled his friends cheering for him as the witch locked lips with his own.

"Oh, right, _that._"

"Yes that! I knew before that though."

"H-"

"You're not that sneaky."

Neville shut his mouth because he knew that was the truth. He was in awe, though, at Nielah's intelligence and observation skills. She was a lot more mature than most students her age. Of course, so was Aubrielle and it most likely ran in the family. Aubrielle caught the snitch yet again before releasing it for the fifth or sixth time. One could just see from watching her that flying was her passion. She dashed through the columns and stands chasing the Snitch. Nielah shot her a smile when she looked over at the benches to see if the trio was still watching her. She beamed at her friends before taking off again. Neville decided to keep the conversation going because it took his mind off the cold.

"Well, if you want me to date Aubrielle so badly, how do you think I should ask her?"

The youngster came out from under his arm and scrunched her eyebrows in thought. She looked from Aubrielle to Neville to Luna and then back to Neville.

"Well she isn't one for romantics and all that cheesy stuff."

"I know."

She sat there, thinking hard. She knew that from what her sister told her, she really liked Neville and she had never fallen for someone this quickly before. Nielah had never personally seen Aubrielle this happy about a boy, so she was determined to get this right for her. Nothing too big, of course, because then Neville would have nothing to work up to. She watched her older sister outstretch her arm, so close to the snitch yet again. Suddenly, she had a brilliant idea. One that needed some serious planning, but it would be special to Aubrielle to say the least.

"I got it!"

(Saturday)

Aubrielle was practically jumping as she walked into the Great Hall wearing her team sweater. Her hair was slicked back into a French braid and she bounced with anticipation for the day's game. She got a lot of nods, cheers, and 'good lucks' as she sat down next to Nielah, Ginny, and Neville at the Ravenclaw table. Nielah was wearing her feather headpiece which made her older sister smile from ear to ear. Michael Corner come up and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Good luck today Aubrielle! Smash another record!"

"Thanks Michael! I'm gonna try!"

The Ravenclaw boy walked away and Aubrielle turned to look at everyone else, "HOW EXCITED ARE YOU FOR THIS GAME?"

They all smiled at her enthusiasm. She had practically screamed that last sentence, though, and Neville's ears were ringing from it. He pushed a plate of food towards her but she didn't touch it.

"Not as excited as you, that's for sure. Here, eat something."

"I can't eat. Too jittery."

"Aubrielle you need to eat _something_. Not just for the game but for you injuries too. You need to stay healthy."

The witch reluctantly grabbed a piece of bread and took a bite out of it. She chewed it quickly and swallowed.

"There. Happy?"

She turned to Neville who laughed at her immaturity, "Nope. The whole thing…"

She shoved the entire piece in her mouth before gulping down some Pumpkin Juice. She turned, opened her mouth, and stuck her tongue out to show that all the food was gone. Neville smiled at her, satisfied.

"You're going to watch me, right?"

"Of course."

"Great!" And with that, the sixth year jumped up and ran back out of the Great Room and towards the pitch to get some flying in before the game. The remaining trio sat there, still trying to consume the conversation. She had talked so quickly and it happened so fast. Ginny turned to look back at her best friend.

"So, have you decided how you're going to ask her out? And what you're going to do?"

The wizard turned to Nielah and winked at her. She replied by flashing a mischievous grin.

"Oh yeah. I've got it all planned out. It's bloody brilliant too and all Nielah's planning."

"Great! What is it?"

"Oh, you'll find out sooner or later."

The red headed witch frowned at his mysteriousness. She wanted to know Damnit! This was obviously important to Neville, though, and she wasn't going to push him any further. Luna walked into the Great Hall then and wrapped her bronze and blue scarf around Neville's neck. He tilted his head back to see that she was wearing her feather headdress as well. She smiled down at him as she tightened the scarf.

"There. Now everyone knows who you're rooting for."

Ginny laughed at her friend, "Oh, I think everyone already knows who he's rooting for Luna. He made that quite clear in the Great Hall on Wednesday."

"Alright can we drop that? She was the one who pounced on me for Merlin's sake!"

Ginny and Nielah stood up as the clock tower rang out eleven times. The game was going to start soon and they wanted good seats for this one. Hufflepuff's team was better than it had been in years and they were a genuine threat this year for the cup. Luna tugged on the scarf to get Neville to stand up. As they were walking out of the Great Hall Luna whispered to him, "You know you liked it."

The wizard immediately turned a dark shade of red.

o.O.o

The two teams took their starting positions on the pitch as Madame Pooch walked out with the box of game balls. The crowd was fired up and the Ravenclaw section was starting up a chant for Aubrielle. Soon it was a full on cheer.

"SONG! SONG! SONG! SONG! SONG!"

The referee released the Snitch, followed shortly by the Bludgers. As soon as she tossed up the Quaffle and blew the whistle, the game ensued. The students in the stands started cheering and yelling as the players flew at each other. Aubrielle was hovering over top of the pitch, scanning the field for the Snitch. Her eyes were narrowed in focus and her head was lightly swiveling from side to side. She threw her hands up in slight frustration as Hufflepuff scored on the Ravenclaw keeper. The students in yellow cheered while the ones in blue moaned. Things looked even worse for the Ravenclaw team when one of their Chasers took a Bludger to the chest and fell to the grass below. The medical crew rushed to the unconscious player and took him away on a stretcher. Hufflepuff took advantage of the man down and scored again. Up above, Aubrielle's brain went into panic mode as she saw her team get beat up. It felt like minutes were ticking by when in reality she knew it was about 30 seconds. For the fast paced game of Quidditch, however, 30 seconds could make or break the game. Suddenly she heard it. It was the joyous sound of wings quickly fluttering. She turned to the noise and saw the snitch taunting her about ten feet away. It was quickly darting from side to side and she narrowed her eyes at the ball. She leaned forward on her broom to accelerate and took off after her target. The students saw her fly off and started chanting her name again. The Seeker wove in between the flag poles as the snitch tried to lose her.

The Hufflepuff Seeker saw Aubrielle flying through the air and took off after her. She neared the Ravenclaw but Aubrielle shot upwards as the Snitch went higher into the air. They could both see the Snitch now but they disappeared out of sight as they shot through a layer of clouds. Neville held his breath as Aubrielle vanished from his line of vision. He knew that the air was going to get thin, and with her serious chest injury, she was bound to have breathing problems.

Up above, Aubrielle and the Hufflepuff Seeker started hitting each other with their brooms to try and gain the upper hand. Aubrielle's breath hitched in her chest as she felt the pressure build up inside of her. She looked over at the opponent and saw that she seemed fine with the thinning air. She knocked into her broom harder which made her lose her concentration. The Snitch suddenly dropped downwards towards the pitch again and Aubrielle did her iconic backflip to redirect herself. She was already shooting downwards before the Hufflepuff seeker could even blink. She reentered the field and the Ravenclaw team started cheering when they saw that the Hufflepuff seeker was nowhere in sight. The Snitch started circling the outside of the field with Aubrielle close behind. One of her teammates yelled her name and she turned to see a Bludger coming straight at her head. She quickly ducked, causing her broom to dip downwards, as she missed the ball by inches. She regained control over her broom and she inched closer and closer to the golden ball. She used every muscle in her body to put her hand out as far as it could go. The Snitch shot underneath the drapes of the stands and soon the witch was weaving in between the wooden posts. Why the Snitch being such a goddamn bastard today?

She could hear the crowd cheer above her as her team scored. She was unfazed, however, as the Hufflepuff Seeker came up beside her.

"Give up now Song!"

Aubrielle simply laughed as she shot forward. She dodged a wooden beam before flying out of the structure, catching up to the Snitch. She was so close that she could feel the subtle breeze that was forming from the Snitch's fluttering wings.

"Come here…"

She took a daring plunge forward and finally wrapped her fingers around the coveted ball.

"YES! YES!"

She was screaming as she flew to the center of the field, showing everyone that she had accomplished her goal. The Ravenclaw stands erupted as they saw their Seeker holding the game-winning ball. Her teammates flew towards her and she was soon engulfed in a giant group hug. She could hear her name echoing in her ears as she cried soft tears of joy. Gods it felt so good to fly and play Quidditch again. She was so close to losing all of this and she was immensely grateful.

The Hufflepuff Seeker walked over towards her and extended her arm in congratulations.

"Great game Song. I'll get you next year."

The two witches smiled at each other as they shook hands, "I look forward to it."

The teams went back into the locker rooms and the students started clearing out of the stands, still chanting Aubrielle's name as they went. Nielah held onto Neville's wrist as he led them out towards the locker rooms to wait for Aubrielle. When they rounded the corner, Neville was surprised to see an older woman talking to her. The lady had short black hair with streaks of silver in it. Her eyes were a marvelous green color and she had a lean figure. She was wearing a pencil skirt and an expensive looking jacket, like she had just come from the Ministry or something along those lines. For someone as old as her, she looked damn good. Nielah let out a shriek before letting go of Neville's hand and sprinting towards the woman.

"MOM!" 

Neville's stomach tied itself in knots as the he came to the realization that the woman was indeed Mrs. Song. _'I'm about to meet Aubrielle's mom! What do I do? How do I act? Will she like me? SHIT!_'

Nielah jumped into her mother's arms and let out a happy giggle. Aubrielle turned to see Neville frozen and gently waved him over to them. Each step he took felt like he was walking towards his death. If Aubrielle's mother didn't like him, there was no point in trying to take things further. And if that were the case, he would hate himself forever. He finally reached the three ladies but stood silently. Aubrielle laughed at his nervousness.

"Neville, this is my mom. Mom, this is Neville Longbottom."

Mrs. Song extended her hand to him and he shook it timidly. _'Great first impression Longbottom.' _He went to say hi to the woman but she cut him off.

"So _you're_ Neville? I've heard a lot about you and I was hoping I would get to meet you. Actually, I would like to pull you aside so we can talk…privately."

Mrs. Song looked at her daughters who both had their foreheads scrunched in confusion. Their mom had never done this before. She looked back at Neville, who reluctantly nodded his head. The wizard's insides flipped as Mrs. Song led him away from the crowd. His hands started to sweat and his body told him to run. But he couldn't, he had to stay here and face whatever she was about to say to him head on. He prayed to Merlin that she would say kind words to him but, instead, she narrowed her eyes at him intimidatingly and said the exact thing he was hoping he wouldn't hear.

"I don't want you and Aubrielle to be friends..."

The Gryffindor's jaw dropped in amazement at her bluntness. He could feel the tears creep into his eyes and the lump forming in his throat. He let out a sniffle but refused to let the conversation be at that.

"Listen, Mrs. Song, I don't mean any disrespect but I really care about your daughter and I don't know what she told you but I promise to treat her like she deserves and-"

"You didn't let me finish Mr. Longbottom."

The two were quiet for a while and Neville stood tall, hoping to show her that he was good enough to date her daughter. She smiled at him, which caught him off guard, and continued her sentence.

"From what Nielah and Aubrielle have both told me, you are really well suited for my daughter. Obviously she means a lot to me and I want what it best for her and right now, I think that's you. I want you to help her trust men again and I want you to move out of that friend zone that Nielah told me you two have been, her words, 'awkwardly stuck in.' I'm asking you to start being more than her friend. I'm asking you to date her. Trust me when I say this, I've never said this to anyone before so I expect you to treat her right. I want nothing but the world for her and I think that at this point of time, you're what she needs. I'm sorry that I'm being so pushy, we barely know each other, but in my mind it's the sooner the better."

A tear streaked down Neville's cheek but he didn't wipe it away. He took a step closer to Mrs. Song, who was smiling at him, and slowly put his arms around her to hug her. She willingly accepted the embrace from the boy before pushing him back so she could look at him. She too, now had a tear in her eye.

"I can already tell that you're the perfect boy for her."

"Thank you so much Mrs. Song. Thank you. I promise to respect her and I promise I won't hurt her."

"I know. Now, lets dry those eyes and get back to those girls, yes?"

Neville took his sweater sleeve and whipped away the streaks as Mrs. Song walked back to her daughters. Aubrielle was talking to a couple Ravenclaw students when her mom came and kissed her on the forehead.

"Great game darling. I've got to go though, work calls. Can't wait to see you play again soon."

"Thanks for coming mom, it meant a lot to me."

"Anytime sweetie. I love you."

"Love you too mom. Hey, what did you say to Neville?"

"I'll, uh, tell you some other time."

"Err, okay. Bye mom."

Mrs. Song bent down to kiss Nielah before walking away from the pitch to the point where she could apparate away to the Ministry. Neville walked slowly back to the Song sisters with a grin plastered on his face. Aubrielle ran up and hugged him so she could whisper in his ear, "Everything go okay with her?"

"Better than I could have imagined."

"Good."

She brought her face forward so she could give him a quick peck on his cheek before rushing into the locker rooms and changing out of her jersey. He walked up to Nielah and put his hand on her shoulder while they waited for Aubrielle to change.

"Tonight's a go."

The fourth year looked up at him, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. She took a golden Snitch out of her pocket and tossed in the air of a couple of times.

"Perfect."

**Oh yeah! Nielah and Neville definitely have something awesome up their sleeve for Aubrielle. It will unfold in the next chapter! P.s. I think my next chapter my be my last….wahhhhhhhh. :( SAD FACE! But I will also be writing that one chapter story about this couple's first sexual interaction so if you are into that stuff, keep an eye out for it. I hope you have all enjoyed reading this as much as I have been writing it. Review!**


	20. Follow the Snitch

**Alright readers, here is my last chapter. It's going to be a lengthy one but I hope you like it. I will also write a one-chapter story about them in a more intimate setting. Either subscribe for author updates or look out for the title, "Give Everything: Aubrielle and Neville." Also, if I get enough requests for an epilogue, I will write one, since I already have a future set for these two. I hope you really enjoy this last chapter. I loved creating the Song sisters and I hope you enjoyed discovering them! Review to make me happy :)**

(Saturday Night)

The usual gang, save for Luna and Seamus, were gathered in the Great Hall, eating dinner and talking about the game. Aubrielle was still beaming from the flattery that was coming her way. Normally she would just brush it off her shoulders and be modest about her win. But after her near death experience, she was leaning to appreciate every little moment that was given to her. She reached under the table and lightly put her hand on the knee of the wizard sitting next to her. It was because of him that she was sitting here with her friends and loving life. She unconsciously rubbed her thumb in circles on his thigh and soon his hand was covering hers, their fingers interlaced. Even though everyone was having a good time and there were plenty of laughs to go around, it was getting late and tomorrow would be a day full of studying for their term finals. The Golden Trio scurried up to the Gryffindor tower and Neville slowly let go of her hand.

"I've got to go meet up with Professor Sprout. I new shipment of Mandrake Roots came in today and I promised her I would help unload them."

The Ravenclaw made a sigh of disappointment as he stood up. He bent down and gave her a lingering kiss on her lips before saying, "I know," and walking out of the hall. Nielah tugged on her sister's shirtsleeve to get her attention.

"Hey Aubs, why did Mom take Neville aside today after the game?"

"I don't know Nie. She's never done that before, has she?"

"No, and that's why I'm worried. I really hope she didn't scare Neville."

Aubrielle laughed at her little sister as she finger combed her long, wavy locks, "I don't think she did. I asked him if everything went okay and he said it went better than that. I don't think he would try to bluff about something like that."

Nielah hummed her approval before resting her head on her sister's shoulder.

"Can we go back to the tower? I'm getting really tired really quickly."

"Sure. C'mon…"

The two Ravenclaws said goodbye to everyone else before heading towards the Ravenclaw Tower. They got about half way when Nielah suddenly shot ahead and into the bathroom. Aubrielle was taken off guard but her sister yelled at her from within the stone chamber. 

"I just really have to go all of the sudden. Wait for me outside!"

"Uhm, okay."

The sixth year stood there, suddenly lost in her thoughts about her mother and Neville. Aubrielle had told her how much she liked him, and how much she cared for him, so would her mother really try to drive him away? After all, he was only the second boy that she had really talked to her mother about. The first one was a Hufflepuff by the name of Davis during her second year here, but she was so young and her mother knew it wouldn't become anything serious. This was a different situation, however. Aubrielle was nearing 18 now and she would soon become a young adult. She was old enough to make her own decisions about her future and about relationships. She was suddenly distracted as she heard a strange sound nearing her. The witch immediately whipped her wand out and pointed it towards the noise.

"Lumos!"

The blue light that emitted from her wand caught the shiny exterior of the object and she slowly lowered her wand as she saw a Snitch hovering in the air. She looked at it curiously, wondering what it was doing there. She tentatively reached out to grab it but it slowly moved out of her reach. It turned the corner of the hall but them came back, signifying that she should follow it. She looked back towards the bathroom and thought about her sister. She was a fourth year; she could walk back to the tower alone, right?

"Hey Nie?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you walk back to the tower alone? I need to…um…check something out."

"Yeah! Go ahead Aubs! I'll be okay!" 

Nielah, knowing exactly what was going on, smiled as she heard her sister's soft footsteps echo down the hall and around the corner.

After being granted her sister's approval, Aubrielle reached for the Snitch again but it refused to be caught. It floated around the corner and the slow and steady humming of its fluttering wings put her into a trance as she followed it. It was being uncharacteristically calm, not darting from side to side, but instead hovering a couple feet in front of her. The golden ball took her around another corner and she soon saw something suspended in front of her. She approached the object to see that it was an edition of the Daily Profit. As it gently fell into her hands and turned to page three, she saw that it was the edition that featured her record smashing catch from about a month prior and she smiled as she read the familiar headline, **SONG SNATCHES SNITCH: SMASHES RAVENCLAW RECORDS**_. _She looked at the picture of her nose-diving the pitch and felt and warm glow in her stomach. What a great day that was. That was also the first day that Neville asked her out on a date.

The Snitch flew back in front of her face, reminding her that it was still there. She looked up at the ball and continued to follow it, tucking the Profit under her arm. As it fluttered down the halls, Aubrielle became aware that the rooms and halls were pretty much empty and it was getting late. Most of the students were in their dorms now, either studying for exams or getting a good night's sleep.

The Snitch stopped at the entrance to the library and she frowned as she saw another Daily Profit hanging in the air. This one made her insides turn with anger as her eyes settled upon the face of Theo Nott. The title on the front page was big and bold and she new that headline well too; **UNFORGIVABLE AT HOGWARTS. NOT EVEN SCHOOLS ARE SAFE**_. _Her face grew hot with anger as she saw the smug look on the Slytherin's face. He had been so proud of his Dark Magic back in the locker rooms and his cockiness was practically tattooed on his forehead. She took the paper and shoved it under her arm, not wanting to look at the git's face for a moment longer.

Instead of moving, the Snitch hung there, teasing her with its laziness. She curiously reached for it again but it hovered backwards and the door to the library slowly swung open. She looked down the hall and saw that no one was there and she wondered if anyone would be able to hear her scream if this turned into something bad. She gripped her wand tightly in her palm and slowly followed the Snitch down the isles of the library. It sailed in a cove and revealed a third paper. Her anger for the Slytherin sixth year dimmed as she now saw him on the front page, his hands in chains, while his deatheater father had a look of pure dread on his face. The headline was big and bold and she remembered Neville's exhilaration when he read it to her for the first time; **STUDENT WHO USES UNFORGIVABLE AT HOGWARTS SENT TO AZKABAN. **She gently reached for the newspaper and tucked it under her arm with the other two before following the Snitch out of the cove and back down the isles. The winged ball stopped for the fourth time but she was confused when she didn't see an edition of the Daily Profit suspended in the air. Instead, the Snitch came back to her and stayed dangerously close to her face. It backed up a little before returning right in front of her nose. This time it was practically begging her to catch it and she reached out to find that it indeed wanted her to.

As she wrapped her long fingers around the ball, loving the familiar sensation of having it in her hands, she felt a memorable dent on the side that only a Seeker would be able to pick out. It was created during her first game as the Ravenclaw Seeker back in second year when she caught the ball by trapping it against one of the rings. She remembered perfectly as she relived the moment in her head. It was her first win and her it made swell with pride. Suddenly, her first catch made a strange clicking noise and she was shocked to see the golden ball open to reveal a hidden compartment. The witch watched with wonder as a piece of folded parchment floated out of the ball's center. The paper slowly unfolded itself in front of her to reveal of photograph. As she looked at it closer, she realized that it was one of her and Neville. They were both lying in the bed at the hospital wing, fast asleep in each other's arms. Aubrielle's head was resting on his chest and she watched as her fist slowly clenched and unclenched around his shirt. Meanwhile, Neville was instinctively rubbing circles on the Ravenclaw's back with his hand and fingers. The witch reached out to touch and photograph and jumped as she heard a voice come from one of the near by coves.

"Madame Pomfrey gave that to me. Said she couldn't help herself. 'We looked too cute to not be photographed.'"

Aubrielle swiveled to her left to see Neville standing there, sitting on the edge of the table. The wizard stood up and stepped to the side, revealing two Butterbeers and a bowl of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. The witch looked at him, her entire being frozen. She was in absolute awe at the simple, yet perfect scene that was laid out in front of her. The Gryffindor slowly stepped forward and took the papers out from under her arm to place them on the edge of the table. She put her wand back in her boot and slid the snitch in her pocket, still holding on to the photograph. He took her hand and brought her in close to his chest and her stomach filled with butterflies.

"I thought we could have our date that we missed out on. You will go on this date with me, won't you?"

Aubrielle's eyes were sparkling and she was truly at a lose for words. Her words were caught in her throat as she tried to show him how much she loved this.

"I, it's, uh, oh, Nev-"

"Just say yes, please?" He laughed at her stutter, which made her all the more adorable. She quickly shook her head 'yes' to show him how happy she was since her voice box refused to work properly. He pulled her towards the table and pulled out her chair. She giggled and accepted his gesture. He walked around to the other side of the table and sat down across from her. She was finally able to form actual words as he smiled at her.

"Neville this is…unbelievable. How, how did you think of this?"

"Actually your sister did most of the work. I just created the little details like…" he gestured to the cove they were seated in, "this is the exact table and cove we were in when you taught me about the potion that later saved your life."

The witch's jaw dropped as she looked around the nook. It was true; this was the exact spot where they had their first real conversation. It was the same moment that started Aubrielle's infatuation with the wizard. She looked back at him to find him snickering, obviously proud of himself for setting this up without her knowing anything. She shifted in her seat so she was sitting on her feet. She leaned forward across the small table until she was right in front of his face. She bent her neck a tad and connected her lips with his. She left it short and sweet and when she pulled away, she could tell that he wanted more. She simply smiled at him and sat back in her chair.

"Thank you Neville. This is perfect."

The witch started things off by being the first one to take a sip of her butterbeer. Neville followed suit and she couldn't help but crack up at the sight of his foam mustache.

The conversation soon flowed and the couple went into their relaxed banter that they normally had. They also picked away at the jellybeans, making disgusted faces when they got flavors such as earwax or dried grass and smiling when they got something delicious like strawberry shortcake or chocolate frog. Their talk slowly led towards the conversation of family and the upcoming holiday break.

"Your mom seemed pretty dressed up at the Quidditch game today. What does she do?"

"She works for the Daily Profit. She's the editor of the gossip and fashion column so she always has to dress to the nines."

"Well I can definitely see where you and Nielah get your eyes from."

"Oh yes. Everyone always says that about us. We're the green eyed Song girls. Although, I've got some brown and gold flecks in mine, something I picked up from my dad."

"Can I ask you…about your dad?"

The witch set down her almost empty butterbeer glass and took a deep breath. Not too many people knew about her dad. In fact, now that she thought about it, no one at Hogwarts really knew about him at all. Yes, they knew that he was no longer a part of their lives, but they didn't know why. Neville saw her face change in demeanor and he immediately regretted asking her such a question. She answered him, however, feeling that it needed to come out sooner or later.

"My dad never really…made the right decisions in life. He was, and still is, a bloody brilliant wizard, but he's also very stubborn. When he was here at Hogwarts he was a Slytherin through and through, including having the pure blood status. My mom was so in love with him that she lied about her own magical background, claiming she was indeed a pureblood. In reality, she was a half blood with a muggle father. When my dad found out, oh God the house was a mess; he stormed out in an angry rage. He called her a liar and traitor to the wizarding society. He never forgave her for messing with his bloodlines. He left to go live with his brother and we haven't seen him since. My parents filed for a magical divorce and it was settled in court. We all took my mother's maiden name and we've been fine without him. The Song girls are strong."

She ended her story with a look in defiance in her eyes, happy to be the daughter of such a strong woman. Neville looked at with a blank stare and his mouth slightly agape. He would have never guessed that something like that had ever happened to Aubrielle by the way she and Nielah displayed themselves.

"So Song isn't your dad's last name?"

"Nope."

"What is it?"

"Kruntski."

"That's an ugly last name."

"I know."

They grew quiet for a while until Aubrielle plucked up the courage to ask Neville about his family. From what Ginny and Luna had told her, he lived with his grandma whom he wasn't that fond of. When she asked about his parents, both witches refused to tell her anything. They said that he would tell her if he wanted her to know. She shifted in her seat, knowing that it would probably stir up some sort of emotion from the boy sitting across from her. She slowly drawled it out, testing the waters.

"So, what about your parents?"

Just as she suspected, the Gryffindor stiffened in his chair and his face grew dark. She nervously tapped her glass, waiting for his response. He looked down towards his lap, like it had suddenly become interesting, and spoke in a low tone.

"My parents aren't…themselves anymore. A deatheater named Bellatrix Lestrange tortured them until she drove them loopy. They are permanently at St. Mungo's and their condition is irreversible. I visit them whenever I can, try and make sure they remember me, and I'm really proud to be their son."

"Whoa. Neville, I-"

"It's okay Aubrielle. I asked you about your parents, you can ask me about mine."

They were quiet for a moment, but it was comfortable. "Why did she do it? Bellatrix, I mean."

"She thought they were holding information that she needed and they refused to give it to her."

His words started to come out in a slight stutter as a single tear fell down his cheek. The Ravenclaw slowly reached out and took his hand in her own, wrapping her fingers around his. He gave her a light squeeze, hating himself for being so goddamn emotional in front of her. His eyes dried up and Aubrielle made the bold move to let go of his hand and go around to the other side of the table. He looked at her quizzically and in one movement she pulled the chair out from the table and gingerly sat down on his lap. He gladly welcomed her by wrapping one arm around her waist and letting his other hand rest on her knee. She put her arm around his shoulders and smiled at him.

"It's your turn to ask a question."

"We're taking turns now?" 

The witch shrugged her shoulders, "Why not?"

"Hmmm, ok then. Where did you learn to play Quidditch like that? You're bloody brilliant."

"My mother," said the witch giggling, "she use to be a Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies."

"No way!"

"Yes way! She was damn good too. She stopped playing when she became pregnant with me but as soon as I could walk, she put me on a broom."

"That's so cool. I always wished I was good at flying."

She was absentmindedly playing with the hair behind his ear as he rubbed circles on her knee. It was getting really late and she had completely lost track of time. How long had they been sitting and talking in the library anyway? One, two, three hours?

"I'll teach you. Sometime over winter break we'll meet up and I can teach you. I've been running a lot of drills with Nielah lately and it would be nice to have another person there."

He shuddered as he thought about being in the air. Yes, he always wished he had been able to fly well, but the thought of being so high in the air scared him a little. If he were learning from Aubrielle, however, he wouldn't mind it as much.

"Yeah well you better be a damn good teacher considering how badly I suck at it."

Aubrielle chuckled, "Oh don't worry. You'll be better than Harry by the end of break."

Neville literally erupted with laughter at her words. The only time he would _ever_ be better than Harry is in his dreams. She put her head on his shoulder and nuzzled into his chest, loving the way his body heat felt against her. She sighed, secretly taking in the scent of his cologne at the same time. It was the same aroma that she smelt when she gave him back his Herbology all those weeks ago. She closed her eyes as the fumes wafted through her nostrils. Gods she loved his cologne.

"Your turn." His voice was low and gravely and it sent a shiver down her spine. There was one question that had been on her mind not just all night, but all week. As she and Neville grew closer, she couldn't help but doubt herself like most girls. She wondered what made her stand out to him. How was she so different from the rest of the girls at Hogwarts?

"Why me?"

"Hmmm?"

"Of all the girls in the school, why me?"

'_What a question.' _He could go on and on about Aubrielle and how she made him happy. Thinking about how to word his response, he sat there for a moment and let her question sink in. Why her?

"You've always fascinated me Aubrielle."

"How so?"

"Well before I got to really know you, you were always so mysterious to me. You sat by yourself and didn't really talk to anybody, yet you were this extremely intelligent and talented witch," he looked down into her mesmerizing hazel eyes, "not to mention stunningly beautiful. I wanted to figure out who you were. And I'm really happy that I did."

The witch lifted her chin up to look at him, their faces now only an inch apart. She could hear his breath stop in his throat as she closed that small gap. His hand instinctively went to the back of her head and he wrapped his fingers in her dark waves. She lightly bit down on his bottom lip and smiled against his mouth, as she tasted a hint of butterbeer on it. He opened his mouth, craving for more, and she deftly slid in her tongue to dance with his own. She turned her body so she was now straddling him and the heat between them became tangible. Neville's other hand found the small of her back and he brought her closer. In response, the witch wrapped her arms around his neck and her kiss become more impassioned. The two sat there, stuck in their dance, and enjoying every second of it. Neville's heart rate was speeding up and he swore that Aubrielle could feel it against her own chest. Needing air, Neville released from her lips and slowly placed kisses on Aubrielle's chin before trialing them down her neck. She gasped as his fingers slipped under her shirt, tickling her heated skin. She let her head fall so her lips were at his forehead and she continued to cover it in soft pecks.

The wizard worked his way back towards her face and stopped right in front of her lips. Her entire body craved more but Neville wasn't letting her have what she needed. She let out a loan moan of disapproval as he teased her by holding her face terribly close to his. They were both panting by now and when he spoke, his breath was heavy and hot.

"One…more…question."

"Later."

The witch used all her might to release her head from Neville's hold and sure enough, her lips were back on his. Her hands went to cup his face but before she could get any further he pulled her face back again, causing her to let out a low hiss.

"No, now."

"Ughh."

"It's a simple question. Yes or no."

She pushed her bottom lip out in a pouty frown as her pace began to steady itself. She opened her eyes to look into his and sat further back on his lap. She brought her hands down to rest on his chest, "Fine."

He smiled at her but she could tell that he was nervous about something. He looked up into her eyes, wanting to make this as personal as possible. Quietly he asked her the question that he had wanted to ask for years.

"Aubrielle Song, will you be my girlfriend?"

Her smile was not nearly big enough to show her happiness. She leaned forward and shot back to his face, giving him the most passionate kiss she possibly could have. He wrapped his arms around her waist and completely encircled her small frame. She pushed herself forward so her chest was pressed up against him and she could feel their hearts beating at the same rapid pace. She slowly pulled away, keeping her eyes shut. Their faces were still so close that she could feel the tingle from Neville's breathing. She took a couple breathes before speaking the last word of the night.

"Yes."

(End)

**Oh tears! That was easily my favorite chapter. So ends my short story about Neville and Aubrielle. If I get enough requests for an epilogue, I will write one. Also, if you think the end of that chapter was steamy ;) look out for my one chapter story about these two lovebirds getting it on. REVIEW IF YOU LIKED IT. Thank you to everyone who read my story.**


	21. Author's Note THERE WILL BE A SEQUEL

Author's Note!

Hello my readers. So, not really due to requests but because I want to, I WILL be writing a sequel to this. It is called, "We're fighting to stay alive" so look for it! If you really want to make sure you find it, subscribe to my author channel and you'll get an update for it. It's going to be very tricky to write though so be patient with me. It will most likely take place during their 7th year at Hogwarts so you will see more of the battle and the school from Neville's perspective.

Also, my one chapter story about these two is OUT. It is called "Give Everything: Aubrielle and Neville." It is smut so only read it if you like that sort of thing.

I hope that you read my sequel and I hope that you have a safe holiday break!

Keep reading! 

~ HepburnHigh


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